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Opera Review Captivating steampunk treatment wins the day

The Magic Flute
Hackney Empire

MOZART’S magical opera The Magic Flute gets given the steampunk treatment in this captivating revival of Scottish Opera’s 2012 production by director and famed baritone Thomas Allen.

Notorious for its convoluted plot, Allen opts for pantomime over pomp as he skilfully avoids the temptation of getting bogged down in the singspiel’s evident capacity for ostentation.

 James Glossop)
Members of The Magic Flute Cast. Scottish Opera 2019 (Pic: James Glossop)

A stage light cast onto the face of a man in the audience turns out to be our hero the Prince Tamino (Peter Gijsbertsen), who takes to the stage before the adventure unfolds.

Of course the real protagonist is Tamino’s clownish companion Papageno (James Cleverton), a part once played by Allen himself, who guides our hero to his damsel in not-so distress while simultaneously on the hunt for his own Papagena (Sofia Troncoso).

 James Glossop)
Luca McGowan, Euan Kemp and Kai Kerr (The Three Boys) in The Magic Flute. Scottish Opera 2019. (Pic: James Glossop)

Simon Higlett’s spectacular set, to rival the imagination of Jules Verne, has a wonderfully constructed portal that opens up a pandora’s box of characters and creatures.

Out of this portal first comes the majestic Queen Of The Night (Julia Sitkovetsky) in a breathtaking sequence matched only by her later showstopping rendition of the opera’s famous aria.

 James Glossop)
The cast of The Magic Flute. Scottish Opera 2019. (Pic: James Glossop)

She convinces the gullible prince that her daughter Pamina (Gemma Summerfield) has been taken captive by “evil” sorcerer Sarastro (James Creswell) and promises her hand in marriage if he rescues her.

Armed with only the magic flute, gifted by the queen, the prince and Papageno, with his equally enchanting pipes and bells, journey into the unknown.

Highbrow opera goers will cringe at some of Papageno’s modern references to Coronation Street and Mr Kipling, but then again, at times you have to admire the two finger salute to snobbery.
June 22 2019 and touring. hackneyempire.co.uk

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