Welsh National Opera - The Magic Flute at The Mayflower Theatre, Southampton

I was invited by The Mayflower Theatre, Southampton to watch The Magic Flute* performed by The Welsh National Opera. The Magic Flute is an opera with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart that was first performed in Vienna in 1791. The Welsh National Opera's current production gives us a quirky and modern twist on the timeless story of love and friendship.

The story starts with Tamino fighting a monster and being rescued by Three Ladies who work for the Queen of the Night. Tamino meets Papageno the bird-catcher and together they go to rescue the Queen's beautiful daughter, Pamina who has been abducted and imprisoned by Sarastro. Guided by Three Boys and aided by a magic flute and a set of magic bells, the two friends start their perilous journey.

We soon learn though that all is not as it seems. Sarastro is not the evil character initially portrayed and instead invites Tamino to join his Brotherhood by undergoing a number of trials. Together with Pamina they succeed and they are united in love. Even Papageno, the comical bird-catcher finds his own true love Papagena at the end.

Sarastro's guard Monostatos played by Howard Kirk is gloriously evil and judging by the applause and boos he received at the end, he relished the role and the audience loved his portrayal.

The production is wonderful visual feast. The sense of depth on the stage and the use of deceptively simple props all helped with the surreal feeling of the show.

The Three Boys are played by young singers and their self assurance and confidence shone through in whichever scene they were in. I can't imagine that singing and performing while on an elevated cycling fish was the easiest of tasks!

This performance by The Welsh National Opera really does change your perception of what a traditional opera is. It's a performance for all ages and I noticed both young and old in the audience. I think as a child I would have been mesmerised by the effects and costumes on stage and I hope the children in the audience were too.

This was a magical and playful performance with plenty of humour. You could hear people chuckling throughout with some laugh out loud moments. The bird-catcher Papageno played by Mark Stone had some of the best lines and interaction with the audience and even when wasn't singing, still stole the scene. Samantha Hay's portrayal of The Night Queen, as my friend commented, gave you goosebumps. Her voice was beautiful in what seemed to my inexperienced ears seemed to be an extremely difficult role to sing.

I have to admit, this was only my second opera and although it was sung in English, I did worry a little about how I would keep up and understand all that was going on. I needn't have worried though. The singing was loud and clear and above the stage there was a discreet digital sign with surtitles (lyrics and dialogue projected above a stage). Certainly for me, this really helped and meant I could concentrate on the music and the story line without worrying about what I was missing. I'm excited to explore the world of opera at future shows.

A big thank you to The Mayflower Theatre and Southampton Bloggers for the invite.

Thanks for reading

Cathy
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*Tickets were gifted for the purpose of this review.