Martina Mádlová / Recensioner

The magic flute without folk philosophizing turned into a cheerful fairy tale for young children, but even adults are by no means bored. This is what a performance should look like that arouses interest in opera without violent lectures and stupid, superficial updates. Tamino, Pamina, photo by Jana Hallová Tamino, Pamina, photo by Jana Hallová From the original, almost three-hour work, the story remains for less than an hour, the main hero of which is the birder Papageno. He accompanies us through the whole story, introduces us to other characters, also accompanies Tamin on the way to Pamina, and by the way he finds his Papagena himself. The noble symbols of good and evil, i.e. the high priest Sarastro and the Queen of the Night, disappeared, replaced by the more popular First Lady and Monostatos. Papageno, Pamina, photo jana Hallová Papageno, Pamina, photo jana Hallová A simple scene made of dry branches created the believable illusion of a forest, Papageno's home. Papageno stylized into a vagabond with an empty nest on a cap was not the only subtle parallel with the 2003 production of The Magic Flute at Covent Garden (directed by David McVicar). She was also reminded of his final duet with Papagena – in the nest instead of in bed, but there was also a pillow wound – or Monostat's reaction to the sound of the chime. The costumes in bright colors and distinctive stylizations (Pamina like wild strawberry) are child-friendly, but do not slip into kitsch. Lucie Halgašová has created a solid basis for immediately cheerful directing, perhaps only Ondrej Olos at the piano would be worth dressing better when he is also on the stage and cannot do it himself. Monostatos, photo by Jana Hallová Monostatos, photo by Jana Hallová Tomáš Pilař staged a fairy-tale story with ease corresponding to the music used. The performance talked to the children – figuratively constantly and sometimes literally. An immature audience is counted on here as an element that needs to be involved in the game and not just let it stand by patiently. I have to say that I am really glad that Tomáš Pilař has finally caught on with me with this direction, and I am convinced that he should take some of its directness, clever uncomplicatedness and willingness to go directly to the heart of the matter into his work for adults. He is also, together with Patricia Částková, the author of the translation and dramaturgical adaptation (here the question arises as to why it was based on Eberhard Streul's compilation at all and not on The Magic Flute itself). The jokes were mostly hilarious, and if not downright hilarious, at least they did not offend good taste, the few prosodic hiccups were to a completely forgivable extent – both authors did an excellent job. Pamina, Papageno, photo by Jana Hallová Pamina, Papageno, photo by Jana Hallová The musical accompaniment was provided by the reliable Ondrej Olos at the piano, complemented only by the celesta and, of course, the flute. The children's version was not hurt by the absence of the orchestra and it was also possible to stretch the stage towards the audience. This increased not only the space for the acting event, but also for communication with the audience. It was verified during the exams and the children responded very helpfully and lively. The singers visibly enjoyed their roles, they didn't have to work hard over the piano, they played excellently and seemed to have as much fun as the audience, without forgetting what to do. Papageno plays the magic flute, i.e. The Magic Flute in the children's arrangement by Eberhard Streul, Tomáš Pilař and Patricia Částková was really successful. Whether or not you want to teach your children to go to the opera, go out with them for a hilarious experience. It's hard to see something like that on TV.