Montreal's 'Magic Flute' fun — and beautiful
Opera Review
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Soprano Aline Kutan, Violetta in the Green Mountain Opera Festival's 2008 "La Traviata" at the Barre Opera House," was Queen of the Night in the Opéra de Montréal's production of Mozart's "The Magic Flute." Photo by Yves Renaud |
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By Jim Lowe Times Argus Staff - Published: November 13, 2009
MONTREAL — It's nearly impossible to believe that Mozart wrote his most fun opera, albeit with characteristic depth, while he was dying.
But, in fact, "The Magic Flute," which premiered to great success in 1791, the year of the composer's death, was written for a vaudeville house, rather than the grand opera stage.
To be truly successful, a production of "The Magic Flute," Die "Zauberflöte" in the original German, must have beauty and it must be fun — and the Opéra de Montréal production, which opened Saturday at Place des Arts, had both in spades.
Saturday's performance proved simply delightful. With an excellent all-Canadian cast, imaginative staging and fine musical direction — to say nothing of great original material — it would be hard to go wrong.
The libretto was written by Emmanuel Schikaneder, owner of the vaudeville house, Mozart's friend and fellow Mason. There are all sorts of Masonic symbolism and rites in the opera, but these are really subservient to the beautiful entertainment — which is a tale for virtually all ages and any lovers of music.
The story begins in a mythical forest where both Prince Tamino and Papageno think they have slain the terrible dragon. But it was really the Ladies of the Queen of the Night. For their efforts, Papageno, a simple bird-catcher in service of the Queen, is punished, and Tamina receives a locket with the picture of Princess Pamina, the Queen's daughter. If Tamino can save her from the evil Sirastro, she is his.
Tamino, enthusiastically, and Papageno, very reluctantly, begin their search for the captive Pamina.
But stories in Mozart operas are more human than traditional, and not is all it seems. Who is evil, Sirastro or the Queen of the Night? And will the earnest Tamino ever figure it out? And will Papageno, dedicated only to the earthly pleasures of food, drink and women, ever find true love?
Montreal's Papageno, the rich-sounding baritone Aaron St. Clair Nicholson, was great fun throughout, creating a sympathetic comic character that everyone could relate to. Tenor John Tessier did as much justice as could be as the uninteresting and always earnest Tamino, but more beautiful and effective singing, with his light and lyrical tenderness, would be hard to imagine. (Mozart seldom cast tenors as interesting characters; it seems that he really didn't like obvious heroes.)
Soprano Aline Kutan, who sang Violetta in the Green Mountain Opera Festival's 2008 "La Traviata" at the Barre Opera House," was a grand Queen of the Night, and sang the virtuosic part accurately and brilliantly. (Would that she had been lit more scarily in her final big aria.) The mark of any good "Magic Flute" is its Sirastro, and bass Reinhard Hagen delivered powerfully and beautifully with his stentorian lyricism.
Conductor Alain Trudel, in his house debut, led the Orchestre Metropolitain in an effective, if not polished performance. Although it didn't achieve the grandeur of the work, the accompaniment was sensitive and beautiful. The Opéra's chorus, directed by Claude Webster, sounded great.
David Hockney's colorful and amusing cartoon-like sets and costumes, originally created for the San Francisco Opera, created an attractive fairy-tale atmosphere. Save for some overdone ritual, Kelly Robinson's stage direction was witty and fun.
Imaginative lighting by Anne-Catherine Simard-Deraspe enhanced the dramatic effect.
Opéra de Montréal's "The Magic" was beautiful and fun — in spades.