Don Pasquale

Yesterday I attended the MET in HD performance of Don Pasquale.

I really enjoyed this Opera Buffa classic.

I agree entirely with Paul Pelkonen when he writes:

The Metropolitan Opera's revival of Don Pasquale featured the spitfire soprano of Anna Netrebko. While the Russian beauty is the main reason to catch one of these performances, she is a key component of a fine comic ensemble that delivers the opera buffa goods.

You can see what Pelkonen means from the video below:



To quote Pelkinen again:

In the title role, John del Carlo gave a performance that blended physical comedy and vocal athleticism. His slow, gouty gait and moans of woe elicted sympathy for the poor old Don ...



He was ably partnered with Mariusz Kwiecien, an athletic baritone as the conniving Dr. Malatesta. His comic fencing with Ms. Netrebko established their relationship quickly in the eyes of the audience.

The photo shows Dr Malatesta (Kwiecien) and Don Pasqual (del Carlo):



Tenor Matthew Polenzanai may not have the name recognition of some of the other fine bel canto singers working today. But he is a fine, comic actor with a pleasing lyric tenor voice. He sang the long vocal lines of Ernesto's two big arias with impressive control.

The photo below shows Norina (Netrebko) and Ernesto (Polenzanai) during the Love Duet from the final scene in the opera.



And here they sing it:



And here is the finale of the opera:



For more reviews see: here, here and here.

Thisis a summary of the plot as described at this site (follow the link to find photographs of the opera accompanying the plot description):

Act I : A room in Don Pasquale’s villa in Rome, mid eighteenth century. Pompous old Don Pasquale is furious at his nephew and heir Ernesto. Don Pasquale found Ernesto a wealthy bride, but Ernesto is in love with beautiful Norina, and won’t look at another woman. Don Pasquale thinks Norina isn’t rich enough for Ernesto. He’s ordered his nephew to leave her—or lose his inheritance forever.

As the opera begins, Don Pasquale announces that he’s tired of his nephew’s disobedience. He’s going to get married and father some brand-new heirs. That will show Ernesto! As luck would have it, family friend Doctor Malatesta knows the perfect bride: his own sister Sofronia. She’s beautiful, young, and modest—in fact, she’s hardly ever ventured outside of her convent school. Pasquale feels younger already; he can barely wait to start his new family.

Ernesto shows up, and Don Pasquale offers him one last chance to give up Norina and keep his inheritance. Ernesto, of course, refuses. “Well then, start looking for somewhere else to live!” cackles Don Pasquale. He announces that he’s kicking Ernesto out of the house, and getting married himself.

Astounded Ernesto thinks the old man is joking; he suggests that Don Pasquale ask Doctor Malatesta for advice. Pasquale smugly informs him that he’s marrying Malatesta’s sister. Ernesto is crushed.

Scene ii : Later that day, at Norina’s house. Alone in her room, Norina reads a book about chivalrous love. She laughs to herself; she too knows how to use a fleeting smile and a deceitful tear to capture a man’s heart. She receives a letter from Ernesto, informing her that Don Pasquale is getting married. The now-destitute Ernesto has no choice but to seek his fortune overseas. He will leave Rome that very day.

Norina is intensely worried—until Doctor Malatesta shows up with a plan that’s sure to bring Don Pasquale back to his senses. Norina, who’s never met the old man, will pretend to be Malatesta’s demure sister Sofronia. She’ll “marry” Don Pasquale in a fake ceremony. Once they’re “married,” “Sofronia” will drive the old man to the brink of insanity; he’ll be forced to give her whatever she wants just to get rid of her.

Doctor Malatesta’s next task is to teach Norina to act like a “sweet simple young thing,” but Norina proves that she should be the one giving lessons. Malatesta applauds her skill; he knows it won’t be long until the fireworks go off!

Act II : Back at Don Pasquale’s house, Ernesto is feeling very sorry for himself. He’s been disowned, his friend Malatesta proved to be an enemy in disguise—and it looks like he might lose Norina forever. He exits in despair.

Enter Don Pasquale, dressed in splendid wedding clothes. Doctor Malatesta leads in “Sofronia.” Already in character, Norina plays the part of a bashful convent maiden to perfection. Pasquale is delighted with the demure and submissive young girl; he’s as nervous as a schoolboy around her. He agrees to give her half his property, and to obey her every word.

During the mock marriage ceremony (conducted by Malatesta’s cousin, disguised as a notary), Ernesto bursts in to bid his uncle farewell. He stops in his tracks when he sees Norina. Malatesta hastily pulls Ernesto aside and persuades him not to make a scene: he should just enjoy the comedy he’s about to witness.

The instant the phony marriage contract is signed, “Sofronia” drops her naïve sweetness. She refuses to embrace Pasquale, and even threatens to slap him if he doesn’t behave. Ernesto begins to laugh. Furious, Pasquale orders him to leave at once. “Sofronia” icily overrules the old man, and commands Ernesto to stay. Pasquale yells to Malatesta that she has changed, but Malatesta pretends to be completely dumbfounded.

“Sofronia” doubles the servants’ wages. She orders a complete redecoration of the house, plus a new wardrobe for herself and a whole stable full of new horses. Ernesto finally understands that it was love alone that prompted Norina to play this part. The nagging “Sofronia” and the stubborn Pasquale fight tooth and nail until the doctor urges the furious old groom to go to bed.

Act III : Don Pasquale’s house has been transformed. Expensive hats, gowns, and furs are scattered everywhere. Scores of servants rush back and forth as Don Pasquale sorts through a mountain of bills. “Sofronia” flounces past on her way to the theater. When Pasquale forbids her to leave the house, she simply boxes his ears and saunters past him. Humiliated, the old man warns her that he’ll seek a divorce, but his words fall on deaf ears.

On her way out, she “accidentally” drops a letter, and Pasquale, of course, reads it. It’s a love note, inviting “Sofronia” to meet an anonymous lover that night in the garden. Eager to catch his wife red-handed, Don Pasquale sends for Doctor Malatesta.

Later that night. Don Pasquale staggers in, a shadow of his former self. His marriage is wreaking havoc on his nerves; now he wishes that he had just let Ernesto marry Norina in the first place. He shows Doctor Malatesta “Sofronia’s” letter. The Doctor suggests that they surprise “Sofronia” with her lover and force her to agree to a divorce.

Scene ii : That evening, Ernesto serenades Norina outside the little gate to Don Pasquale’s garden. Norina creeps down to meet him, and they sing a beautiful love duet.

Hearing footsteps, Ernesto disappears into the shadows. Don Pasquale and Doctor Malatesta pop out of the bushes and shine lanterns on “Sofronia,” but can’t seem to find her lover.

Don Pasquale sternly orders “Sofronia” to leave his house, but she refuses. After all, the house is hers too! Pasquale is beginning to think he’ll never get rid of her. Then Doctor Malatesta tells “Sofronia” that another woman may soon marry into her household – Ernesto’s Norina. “Never!” says “Sofronia”; she would rather move out than share her house with trashy Norina. Pasquale is delighted—finally, a way to free himself from the monster wife!


Photo Copyright © Beth Bergman 2006
Doctor Malatesta calls Ernesto out into the open and tells him that his uncle will allow him to marry Norina after all. Don Pasquale begs Ernesto to find Norina as soon as possible—he can’t stand “Sofronia” another second.

Malatesta finally reveals that “Sofronia” was Norina all along; the Don’s marriage was a sham. The real Sofronia never left her convent school. The Doctor gently explains that tricking Don Pasquale was the only way to keep him from actually marrying someone else. Don Pasquale considers humiliation a small price to pay for getting rid of the horrid “Sofronia.” He gives the lovers his blessing, and as the curtain falls all join together to sing the moral of the story: old bachelors should always act their age.

Boris Godunov

Yesterday at the Sun Theatre, I attended the Metropolitan Opera performance of Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov. The opera is based on the play by Pushkin.

The opera is an epic, 4 hours 15 minutes long, but I found it very enjoyable. With the MET in HD format which includes interviews with the performers and views of back stage, it was even longer and more enjoyable.

It is often said that there are two main characters to this opera, Boris and the Russian people - in this instance German bass René Pape (who plays Boris) and the Met chorus. Pape gives us a great performance, as the New York Times reviewer wrote:

	With his towering physique and unforced charisma, Mr. Pape looks regal and imposing.
	Yet with his vacant stare, the haggard intensity in his face, his stringy long hair and his hulking gait, he is already bent over with guilt and doubt. Mr. Pape has vocal charisma as well, and his dark, penetrating voice is ideal for the role.

The opera is set in difficult times for Russia. The legitimacy of the Tsar's reign is undermined by rumours that he had the 7 year old heir to the throne killed. This is probably true as Boris has a breakdown where he thinks that he sees the ghost of the child. The Russian people are suffering badly through a series of failed harvests, and many are starving to death. This leads to scenes of mob violence and retribution ...



... and to false claims to the throne by a pretender ...



One of the most interesting characters is the Holy Fool ...



... who see the world more clearly than anyone else.

I enjoy stories where some issues are left unresolved, and in this regard Boris Godunov does not disappoint. As the opera finishes we know that the Tsar is dead, but we don't know who succeedes him and of the fate of the pretender.

The last scene of the opera features the Holy Fool lamenting the terrible condition of Russia. He forsees the Time of Troubles.

(A bit of quick googling shows that Boris's son reigned briefly followed by the pretender who also reigned for only a short time. The Time of Troubles was brought to an end by the rise of the Romanov Dynasty, which lasted for 300 years, until the events of 1917. Follow this link for more information about the historical Boris.)

Some videos of Boris Godunov

Here is a brief excerpt of Rene Pape in the current MET production:



Here is Pape in a "modern dress" version:



The following videos are not from the MET production, but give a sense of the music.

The Coronation Scene



The Holy Fool Scene

The children take the Fool's Kopek, and he demands that Boris kill the children like he killed the heir to the throne. Boris asks the Fool to pray for him, but the Fool refuses because Boris is a murderer.



The Hallucination Scene

Where Boris thinks that he sees the ghost of the dead child.



Outline of the plot

PROLOGUE 1598. Boris Godunov has retreated to the Novodievichy Monastery near Moscow. The Streltsy police force a crowd to beg Boris to become Tsar of Russia, but he still refuses the throne. A procession of pilgrims prays to god for help. Streltsy warn the crowd to be at the Kremlin the next morning ready to cheer.

The following day the bells of Moscow herald Boris's coronation. The new tsar implores God to look kindly on him.

ACT I 1603. In the Chudov Monastery, the monk Pimen is writing a history of Russia. The novice Grigory questions him about the dead Tsarevich Dimitry, rightful heir to the throne. Pimen recounts the events of Dimitry's murder by Boris and remarks that the tsarevich would have been Grigory's age. Grigory condemns Boris and decides to escape the cloister.

Now on a mission to expose Boris and proclaim himself the Tsarevich Dimitry, Grigory is trying to cross into Lithuania to find support for his cause. At an inn near the border, he is almost arrested but manages to escape, pursued by the Streltsy.

ACT II Boris's daughter moruns the death of her fiance. Boris comforts her and talks with his young son about inheriting the throne, then reflects to himself on the crime that gained him the throne and the fears that torment him. Shuisky, a powerful boyar (noble), brings news of a pretender to the Russian throne, supported by the Polish court and the Pope. When Boris learns that the pretender claims to be Dimitry, he is deeply shaken. Alone, he gives way to his terror, imagining that he sees Dimitry's ghost. Torn by guilt, he prays for forgiveness.

ACT III Grigory, who now openly claims to be Dimitry, has made his way to Sandomir Castle in Poland. He hopes to win the powerful and ambitious Marina Mnishek, but she rejects his protestations of love until she is certain of his determination to become tsar.

ACT IV Outside the Cathedral of St. Basil in Moscow, peasants debate whether Tsarevich Dimitry still lives, as news reaches them that his troops are near. A group of children torment a Holy Fool. When Boris and his court come from the cathedral, the Holy Fool demands that Boris kill the children the way he killed Dimitry. Boris asks his accuser to pray for him, but the Holy Fool refuses to intercede for a murderer and, as the crowd disperses, laments Russia's dark future. The council of boysrs passes a death sentence on the pretender. Shuisky arrives with an account of Boris's hallucinations of the murdered tsarevich. Boris suddenly storms in, disoriented and crying out to Dimitry. When he regains his composure Shuisky brings in Pimen, who tells of a man who was cured of blindness while praying at Dimitry's grave. Boris breaks down. He sends the boyars away calling for his son. Naming him heir to the throne, he bids a loving farewell to the boy and dies.

In a forest clearing near Kromy, an angry mob proclaims its resolve to tead down the old order. The false Dimitry arrives with Marina and his army. He calls for the cheering people to follow him on his march to Moscow. The Holy Fool stays behind, lamenting Russia's bleak, uncertain future.

Das Rheingold

Yesterday I attended the MET in HD performance of Das Rheingold.

Das Rheingold is the first opera in Wagner's Ring Cycle.

Here is the official trailer for the opera.



What stands out most in the video is the 40 tonne machine that consists of 24 aluminium and fibreglass planks which pivot like see-saws around a central beam. The planks can be moved into many positions for the different scenes in the performance.

The magic begins before a word is sung, as the orchestral prelude conjures up the beginnings of the world at the bottom of the Rhine. The planks, stretched flat on the stage floor, begin to undulate gently, mimicking the music. Suddenly, the planks rise up to reveal the three Rhinemaidens swimming upward in harness, exhaling bubbles as they sing. (Source of quotation.)



Another stunning effect is in the scene when Wotan and Loge descend to the realm of the Nibelheim. The planks become an Escher like bridge, which body doubles of the singers traverse with the assistance of ropes.



The set planks can also be arranged in more variable shapes, as shown in the scene below were the the gods debate the ultimatum given by the giants who stand on raised planks in the background. Note another theatrical effect as Loge the god of fire is surrounded by a nimbus of flame.



In the video below the director Robert LePage explains his philosophy of the staging of opera. As a Wagnerian novice I particularly applaud his awareness of the variety of operatic audiences. He is aware that opera companies have an educational role (for people like me).



Not everyone supports his approach, and some of the reviews were unfavourable. For examples of unfavourable reviews see here, here and particularly here.

For more positive reviews see here, here and here .

For what it is worth, I really enjoyed the staging and the music of this performance.

Here is a summary of the plot of the opera, taken from this source :

The story begins in the depths of the Rhine river, where the three Rhinemaidens (think "mermaids") are playing in a state of primal state-of-nature innocence. Enter Alberich the Nibelung (dwarf) from a fissure beneath the earth, who spies the three and lusts after them. The Rhinemaidens taunt him and humiliate him for his ugliness and awkwardness. In his rage at being rejected, Alberich steals the Rhinegold from them, having learned that he who is willing to renounce love will thereby gain the ability to forge a ring of power from the gold. The maidens had assumed that no one in his right mind would make such a renunciation, but Alberich is enraged and wants revenge. He disappears with the gold, leaving the bereft maidens to sing a song of loss and grief that will reappear all through the four operas. Alberich forges the ring and makes himself lord over all the Nibelungen.

Meanwhile, Wotan wants a grand castle for the gods to live in as a testament to his greatness. He has contracted with the two giants Fasolt and Fafner to build him the castle. On the advice of the wily Loge, god of fire, Wotan has promised the Giants Freia, goddess of youth and beauty, in return for the building; Loge has assured Wotan that he will find him a way out of the deal. Fasolt and Fafner, having finished the castle, come for their payment. Wotan is stuck; since all his power rests on the treaties inscribed into his spear, he cannot renege on the deal, and the giants make off with the terrified Freia.

Loge, having learned of Alberich's ring, suggests to Wotan that they steal it from Alberich and offer it to the giants as a substitute payment. Wotan agrees, though he secretly plans to keep the ring for himself. The two go down into the earth to Nibelheim where the dwarves live. There Alberich has enslaved the dwarves and forced them to mine him an enormous pile of gold. Wotan and Loge succeed in kidnapping Alberich and take him back to the gods' abode on the mountain top. There they relieve Alberich of the hoard and of the ring. Alberich is as shattered by the loss of his ring as Gollum ever thought of being. He places on the ring a terrible curse, bringing endless misery to all who possess or seek it.

Wotan and Loge offer the giants Alberich's hoard of gold in return for Freia. Fafner accepts, though Fasolt has by now become rather sweet on Freia and wants to keep her. The hoard is piled up, but Fafner wants one last thing: Alberich's ring, now on Wotan's finger. Wotan refuses, the giants threaten to call off the deal and leave with Freia, and in the middle of the hubbub there appears out of the ground Erda ("earth"), goddess of the earth and the world's wisest woman. She warns Wotan to flee the ring's curse, foretells that a death-laden day is coming for the gods, and disappears. Wotan relents and gives the ring to the giants, who immediately fall to arguing about the division of the spoils. Fafner kills Fasolt on the spot, and goes off with the loot.

The problem resolved for the time being, Wotan and the rest of the gods prepare to enter into the new castle, which Wotan dubs "Walhall"--literally, the "hall of the fallen heroes." Fricka, his wife, asks him the meaning of the name, and Wotan says, "If what I'm planning works out, its meaning will become clear to you." The gods enter Valhalla, as the Rhinemaidens sing a mournful song of loss.

The MET live in HD

Even if you don't live in New York you can still "attend" Metropolitan Opera performances. The MET simulcasts performances to cinemas in the US and sends the telecasts around the world, consequently I attend the MET preformances at the Sun Theatre in Yarraville, Melbourne.

Here is the trailer for the 2010 - 2011 season:



I can't wait.

Madama Butterfly

The Love Duet - the most beautiful music and the most poignant scene in all of opera!



Un bel di vedremo:



And Pinkerton's shocking betrayal led to this:

Flash Mob Opera

I expect that you have heard of flash mobs , well here is the opera version:



Here is another one:



Here is a Christmas one:

The Magic Flute

Yesterday I attended Australia Opera's presentation of Mozart's The Magic Flute. It is aptly named as it was a magical performance. Opera has a reputation in the wider community of being high brow and pretentious - a view that I don't accept. Certainly this show was very accessible, partly because it is in the form of a singspiel, "characterized by spoken dialogue, sometimes performed over music, interspersed with ensembles, popular songs, ballads and arias".


While Mozart wrote the music Emanuel Schikaneder wrote the libretto. He also took the role of Papageno at the premier. Schikaneder also may have given advice to Mozart concerning the musical setting of his libretto. The dramatist Ignaz Franz Castelli tells the following tale:

The late bass singer Sebastian Meyer told me that Mozart had originally written the duet where Papageno and Papagena first see each other quite differently from the way in which we now hear it. Both originally cried out "Papageno!", "Papagena!" a few times in amazement. But when Schikaneder heard this, he called down in to the orchestra, "Hey, Mozart! That's no good, the music must express greater astonishment. They must both stare dumbly at each other, then Papageno must begin to stammer: 'Pa-papapa-pa-pa'; Papagena must repeat that until both of them finally get the whole name out". Mozart followed the advice, and in this form the duet always had to be repeated.

An interesting story, though not necessarily true.

Mozart wrote the music with the initial cast in mind, as only two of them (The Queen of the Night and Sarastro) were professional singers. The other parts were taken by actors who could sing a bit. Most characters thus had string introductions so they could find their pitch. Mozart conducted the first two performances before falling ill

The opera premiered in Vienna on September 30, 1791.

This was just two years after the start of the French Revolution, before the revolution spun out of control, murdering its own during the Terror (led by Robespierre and Committee of Public Safety) .

Wordsworth later said of that time:

Bliss was it in that dawn to be alive,
But to be young was very Heaven!" (The Prelude, x, 690-4.)

Mozart, of cause was not a revolutionary, but he was a Freemason. Freemasonry, at that time - quite different to its current incarnation - was about brotherhood and the rights of man. The producer of the Opera Australia production was aware of the Masonic connection as the photo below, from a scene in the Melbourne production, shows Masonic imagery in the background.



Another innovation was that the Magic Flute was sung in German.

As Nicholas Yardley wrote in his review:

The audience didn’t stream out of the Melbourne Arts Centre in 2009 crying, “liberty, equality, fraternity,” or “How wonderful it was sung in German rather than Italian.” Think of fairy floss. It melts away to sweet, sticky nothingness in your mouth. That’s how The Magic Flute is to a modern audience. It’s fairy floss. It’s not about enlightenment. It’s like a Marx Brothers musical with Zeppo as Tamino singing love songs, upstaged by Harpo as Pappageno, who on this occasion sings, and sings very well. It mustn’t lecture – it’s a fantasy.

And that is why the Melbourne production works. The opera opens in an enchanted forest and stays enchanted. The difference between then and now is that the cast can sing, and not just a little bit. Director, David Freeman and conductor, Jari Hamalainen are at their best and Andrew Goodwin as Tamino, not only sounds good, but looks the part. The same can be said of Daniel Sumegi as Sarastro. He towers above the others and looks truly regal. Lorina Gore as the coloratura Queen of the Night is spectacularly suspended by wires high above the stage, sharing the space with a huge, golden crescent moon. Sarah Crane as a tearful Pamina and Andrew Moran, as a boastful Pappageno also perform well.

I particularly enjoyed Moran's performance - Pappangeno as an ocker.

The show was visually spectacular, as the photo below shows:



A great addition was the use of an physical theatre group - Legs on the Wall - to play the animals, which can be seen in the photograph.

Below is a slide show of photos from the production:



And, the music is of cause wonderful. Here is one of the famous arias (though not from the Australian performance) ...



Here is a synopsis of the plot:

Act 1

Scene 1

Tamino, a handsome prince who is lost in a distant land, is pursued by a serpent. He faints from fatigue and three ladies, attendants of the queen appear and kill the serpent. They all fall in love with the prince and each plans to be alone with him. After arguing, they decide that it is best that they all leave together.

Tamino recovers to see before him Papageno, arrayed entirely in the plumage of birds, who sings of his job as a birdcatcher and the fact that he is longing for a wife. (Aria: Der Vogelfänger bin ich ja) Papageno jokes with Tamino but says that he brings the birds that he catches to the Queen of the Night's servants, who give him food and drink in return. Papageno also claims that he has saved Tamino and strangled the serpent with his bare hands. At this moment, the three ladies appear and punish his lie by paying for his birds with a stone instead of food, water instead of wine and placing a padlock over his mouth. They tell Tamino that they were responsible for saving him. He deeply appreciates them and they show to the prince a miniature of a young maiden, Pamina, with whom he falls instantly in love. (Aria: Dies Bildnis ist bezaubernd schön / This image is enchantingly lovely, Like no eye has ever beheld!")
The arrival of the Queen of the Night. Stage set by Karl Friedrich Schinkel (1781–1841) for an 1815 production

The Queen of the Night now appears, demanding that Tamino free her daughter, the original of the picture, from the hands of Sarastro, promising that he can marry Pamina in return. (Recitative and aria: O zittre nicht, mein lieber Sohn / "Oh, tremble not, my dear son! You are innocent, wise, pious"). The ladies give Tamino a magic flute that can change men's hearts, remove the padlock from Papageno, and present him with a chime of bells to protect him. Papageno accompanies Tamino, and they set forth, guided by three boys. They escape all danger by the use of the magic instruments. (Quintet: Hm hm hm hm)

Scene 2: A room in Sarastro's palace

Pamina is dragged in by Sarastro's servant Monostatos, a Moor, who is persecuting her. (Trio: Du feines Täubchen, nun herein!) Papageno, sent ahead by Tamino to help find Pamina, arrives. Monostatos and Papageno are each terrified by the other's strange appearance and flee the stage. But Papageno soon returns and announces to Pamina that her mother has sent Tamino to her aid. Pamina rejoices to hear that Tamino is in love with her, and then offers sympathy and hope to Papageno, who longs for a Papagena to love. Together they sing an ode to love (Duet: Bei Männern welche Liebe fühlen), then depart.

Scene 3: Grove and entrance to the temples

The three boys lead in the prince. As Tamino reaches the temple, he is denied entrance at the Gates of Nature and Reason, by invisible voices singing "Go back!". But when he tries the Gate of Wisdom, a priest appears and gradually convinces him of the noble character of Sarastro. After the priest leaves him, Tamino plays his magic flute in hopes of summoning Pamina and Papageno. The tones of his magical instrument summon first a group of magically tamed beasts, then the sound of Papageno's pipes. Ecstatic at the thought of meeting Pamina, Tamino hurries off.

Papageno appears with Pamina, following the distant sound of Tamino's flute. The two are suddenly apprehended by Monostatos and his slaves. Papageno then works an enchantment on them with his magic bells, and they dance, blissfully and involuntarily, off the stage.

Papageno now hears the approach of Sarastro and his large retinue. He is frightened and asks Pamina what they should say. She replies, "The truth! The truth! Even if it were a crime," and with her words a triumphal march begins (Chorus: Es lebe Sarastro); Sarastro and his followers enter.

Sarastro conducts an impromptu judicial proceeding. Pamina falls at his feet and confesses that she was trying to escape because Monostatos had demanded her love. Sarastro receives her kindly and tells her that he will not force her inclinations, but cannot give her freedom.

Monostatos then enters with Tamino captive. The two lovers see one another for the first time and instantly embrace. The chorus sings "What is the meaning of this?" and they are separated. Monostatos tries to point the finger of blame at Tamino. Sarastro, however, does not believe Monostatos' dastardly trick. He punishes Monostatos for his insolence and leads Tamino and Papageno into the temple of Ordeal.

[edit] Act 2

Scene 4: A grove of palms

The council of priests, headed by Sarastro, enters to the sound of a solemn march. They determine that Tamino shall possess Pamina if he succeeds in passing through the ordeal, as they do not wish to return her to her mother, who has already infected the people with superstition. Sarastro, echoed by his fellow priests, then sings a prayer to the gods Isis and Osiris, asking them to protect Tamino and Pamina and to take them into their heavenly dwelling place should they meet death in the course of their trials. (O Isis und Osiris)

Scene 5: The courtyard of the temple of Ordeal

Tamino and Papageno are led into the temple. Tamino is cautioned that this is his last chance to turn back, but he states that he will undergo every trial to win his Pamina. Papageno is asked if he will also concede to every trial, but he says that he doesn't really want wisdom or to struggle to get it. The priest tells Papageno that Sarastro may have a woman for him if he undergoes the trials, and that she is called Papagena. Papageno says that he wouldn't mind a look at her to be sure, but the priest says that he must keep silent. Papageno finally agrees.

The first test is that Tamino and Papageno shall remain silent under the temptation of women. (Duet, Speaker and Priest) The three ladies appear, and tempt them to speak. (Quintet, Papageno, Tamino, Three Ladies) Tamino and Papageno remain firm, though Tamino must constantly tell Papageno, "Silent!"

Papageno confronts one of the priests and asks why he must undergo tests if Sarastro already has a woman that wants to be his wife. The priest says that it is the only way.

Scene 6: A garden, Pamina asleep

Monostatos approaches and gazes upon Pamina with rapture. (Aria: Alles fühlt der Liebe Freuden) When the Queen of the Night appears and gives Pamina a dagger with which to kill Sarastro (Aria: Der Hölle Rache kocht in meinem Herzen / "Hell's vengeance boileth in mine heart"), Monostatos retires and listens. He tries to force Pamina's love by using the secret, but is prevented by Sarastro, who allays Pamina's alarm. (Aria: In diesen heil'gen Hallen)

Scene 7: A hall in the temple of Ordeal

Tamino and Papageno must again suffer the test of silence. Papageno can no longer hold his tongue, but Tamino remains firm, even when Pamina speaks to him. Since Tamino refuses to answer, Pamina believes he loves her no longer. (Aria: Ach, ich fühl's, es ist verschwunden)

Scene 8: The pyramids

(Chorus) Sarastro parts Pamina and Tamino. (Trio, Sarastro, Pamina, Tamino) Papageno also desires to have his little wife, and sings of this with his magic bells. (Aria, Papageno: Ein Mädchen oder Weibchen). At the first ordeal, an old woman had appeared to him and declared herself his bride. She now again appears and changes herself into the young and pretty Papagena. However, the priests send her away with thunder and lightning. She vanishes, frightened, and Papageno is miserable.

Scene 9: An open country
Tamino and Pamina undergo their final trial; watercolor by Max Slevogt (1868–1932)

The three boys see Pamina attempting to commit suicide because she believes Tamino to be faithless. They prevent her from doing so, and take her to see him.

Scene 10: Rocks with water and a cavern of fire.

Two men in armor lead in Tamino, and in the musical form of a Baroque chorale prelude give him advice, then reassurance that Pamina lives. Sarastro appears and sends Pamina in. Pamina arrives and is overcome with joy to find Tamino, who is now allowed to speak to her. Both pass unscathed through the final ordeal of fire and water with the help of the magic flute, which Pamina tells him was carved by her father from an ancient oak tree. They emerge from their trials to the sound of an offstage chorus singing "Triumph!".

Papageno wishes to take his own life because he can't stop thinking about Papagena, but at the last minute the Three Boys appear and remind him that he should use his magic bells. The bells when played indeed summon Papagena, and the happy couple is united, stuttering at first ("pa … pa … pa") in astonishment. (Duet: Papageno! Papagena![10])

The traitorous Monostatos appears with the Queen of the Night and her ladies to destroy the temple (Nur stille, stille), but they are magically cast out into eternal night.

The scene now changes to the entrance of the chief temple, where Sarastro bids the young lovers welcome and unites them. The final chorus sings the praises of Tamino and Pamina in enduring their trials and gives thanks to the gods.