MAGIC FLUTE

The Zauberflöte, KV 620.

The action of a poetic and at the same time emotional libretto with a deep humanistic message takes place in the scenographic space of a large library: the seat of Knowledge, Strength, Beauty. It is here that the heroes learn the truth about themselves, their ability to sacrifice, overcome life's difficulties, fear of others...

Esoteric and childish, sublime and ephemeral, learned and folk... The magic flute draws on medieval legends, fairy tales, fascination with Egyptian mythology. Arias, duets, triples, quartets, quintets, choirs and collective scenes are constantly intertwined. Each of these moments has its own distinct character, mood, type of orchestra, melody. The libretto is a fairy tale, morality, comedy, mystery.

In our performance, arias are performed in German, and dialogues are performed in Polish.

Summary of libretta

ACT I:

Prince Tamino escapes from the snake chasing him and, exhausted, falls fainting to the ground. Three women rescue him by killing a snake. The birdie Papageno brags to the conscious prince that he was the one who killed the monster. The women return and punish the chatterer by locking his mouth. They make themselves known as the ladies of the Queen of the Night's entourage, because it was to her land that the prince came.

The queen is in trouble: her daughter Pamina was abducted. The women give the prince a portrait of Pamina, and the young man falls in love with her. When the Queen of the Night appears, she promises him the hand of Pamina if she frees the kidnapped from the hands of the evil Sarastro. Papageno is to accompany him. The prince is given a magic flute and Papageno bells to help them out of trouble. A padlock is removed from Papagen's mouth. Three boys (geniuses) point the way to the kingdom of Sarastra.

In his palace, in the absence of the ruler, the overseer of the slaves, the Negro Monostatos wants to force Pamina to love. Papageno, who lost contact with Tamin along the way, now accidentally finds his way to Pamina and saves her from Monostatos. At this time, the prince arrives at the temple of wisdom and learns that the ruler here Sarastro is not a cruel man. He summons Pamina with a magic flute. The flute belonging to Papagen shows him the way to his beloved.

Pamina and Papageno try to escape, but Monostatos with his slaves prevents them from doing so. Papageno uses magic bells: their sound forces the sentries to dance incessantly. It already seems that the escape was successful when Sarastro returns from the hunt. He forgives Pamina, punishes the Negro and orders to lead Tamin and Papagen to the temple, where they will be put to the test.

ACT II

Sarastro explains to his brother priests that Tamino and Pamina are destined for each other. This is also the reason why he took Pamina away from her mother's influence. Tamino still has to go through a series of trials before he can be accepted into the temple of wisdom and become worthy of Pamina. Tamino is determined to face challenges, even if they would be dangerous to his life. Papageno, tempted by the promise of a reward in the form of the alluring Papagena, reluctantly follows the prince.

The ladies of the Queen of the Night warn the examiners of priestly deceit and mortal danger, but Tamino and Papageno are not fooled. Monostatos sneaks into sleeping Pamina. The Queen of the Night finds her daughter and enchants her to kill Saraster and regain the sevenfold circle of the sun, a sign of great power. A black man takes Pamina a dagger given by her mother and threatens: love or death. Pamina confesses to Sarastro the murder plan hatched by her mother and asks for understanding for her.

The first attempt requires compliance with the order of silence. Papageno can't stand this test. Tamino, on the other hand, is silent, even in the face of Pamina's pleas for one word of love. The girl feels abandoned by the prince and wants to take her own life. Three boys pick up her dagger and lead it to Tamina. Papageno, too, wants to die, because he can no longer count on the promised reward. However, when three boys bring him his Papagena, he regains the will to live. Pamina and Tamino pass the test of water and fire. Led by Monostatus, the Queen of the Night breaks into the kingdom of Sarastra with the dawn, but is destroyed. The power of the sun overcomes the night and brightens the deepest darkness.