Re-listening to The Magic Flute opera, this time performed by The Royal Opera House. It truly is a bizarre piece of work.
The first half for some reason brings to mind “The Fifth Element” (Papageno<->Ruby Rhod) and the first Shrek (quite a pair there). It’s somewhat like a kindergarten round there. The motives of the characters are utterly obscure. Better not to ask questions.
The second half starts with a hint of Kubrick’s “Eyes Wide Shut”. Then initially, Pamina threatens to kill herself over unrequited love and waves a blade about, about to commit suicide, but at the last moment, three boys stop her and lead her to Tamino, and then it’s all lovey-dovey. Soon after, Papageno considers hanging himself over Papagena; again, at the last moment, the three boys intervene, Papagena appears, and all ends in lovey-dovey. An interesting message to the audience about how to act when things aren’t going as you want, to make them turn out as you desire.
Possibly, the plot looks skewed from today’s perspective: it’s packed with a huge number of hints and references that aren’t perceived now due to a different context. All those Masonic symbols, Zoroastrianism, initiations. Surprisingly, in the end, the Queen of the Night and Monostatos didn’t marry for total absurdity.
The music, of course, is beautiful, and it allows one to overlook the skewed plot.
#operasrauflikes
Hi, I'm Rauf Aliev. 