Lyric Opera 2021-2022 Issue 3 The Magic Flute

Lyric Opera of Chicago | 34 ‘mother-in-law from hell.’ Her music is so fabulous, so dramatic, and so well known, that we could not help but paint a picture of an enormous spider queen, all bones, lightning, and black-widow imagery. We had fun with her!” Each artistic choice also supports the charm and musical nuance of The Magic Flute’s brilliant score. Monastatos’s dogs surge forth on their leashes ready to attack Pamina with the same snarling energy as Monastatos’s pointy, barbed vocal lines. Pamina and Papageno jump rooftop to rooftop, playfully emphasizing Mozart’s jaunty rhythms. The stage-engulfing video projection also is striking in its scenes of simplicity, such as Pamina’s snow-laden “Ach, ich fühl’s,” in which the young woman stands alone beneath a leafless tree, isolated within a snowglobe, desperate for Tamino’s love. Both Andrade and Kosky possess a deep admiration of Mozart’s music and the score of The Magic Flute , which is reflected in every directional decision and visual invention. In the closing scene, music notes sweep across the screen and land atop the chorus. It is an animation that suitably depicts Mozart’s ability to permeate the listener’s very being. “It’s Mozart, so it’s phenomenal. It’s an extraordinary score,” affirmed Kosky. The composer’s gifts extend far beyond his music, however. “The word that I always associate with Mozart is ‘humanity.’ He did not judge his characters; he presents them with flaws. Mozart is one of the only composers who did that,” concluded Kosky. “We don’t live a life like Pamina and Tamino in this fairy story, but when Pamina can’t make Tamino speak to her, her pain is a pain that any of us can feel. That’s Mozart’s genius; he creates something universal from something very specific. That makes him the most humane of all composers.” Laura Sauer is Lyric Opera of Chicago’s program book editor. The Magic Flute (Los Angeles Opera) Cory Weaver