("The Labyrinth or The Struggle with the Elements. The Magic Flute's Second Part") is a "grand heroic-comic

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

" in two acts composed in 1798 by Peter von Winter to a German

libretto A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to th ...

Emanuel Schikaneder Emanuel Schikaneder (born Johann Joseph Schickeneder; 1 September 1751 – 21 September 1812) was a German impresario, dramatist, actor, singer, and composer. He wrote the libretto of Mozart's opera ''Die Zauberflöte'' and was the builder of th ...

. The work is in the form of a

Singspiel A Singspiel (; plural: ; ) is a form of German-language music drama, now regarded as a genre of opera. It is characterized by spoken dialogue, which is alternated with ensembles, songs, ballads, and arias which were often strophic, or folk- ...

, a popular form that included both singing and spoken dialogue. The opera is a sequel of

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

's 1791 opera ''

The Magic Flute ''The Magic Flute'' (, ), K. 620, is an opera in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to a German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. It is a ''Singspiel'', a popular form that included both singing and spoken dialogue. The work premiered on ...

''.

Performance history

The opera premiered at the suburban Freihaus-Theater auf der Wieden in Vienna on 12 June 1798. As he did in Mozart's opera, Schikaneder himself played Papageno, while the role of the Queen of the Night was sung by Mozart's sister-in-law and prominent soprano Josepha Hofer-Mayer. Schikaneder was the librettist of Mozart's opera and he was considered to have been "one of the most original and most influential theatre persons of his time". Both artists were reprising their roles from ''The Magic Flute''. Alexandra Liedtke, the director of the

Salzburg Festival The Salzburg Festival () is a prominent festival of music and drama established in 1920. It is held each summer, for five weeks starting in late July, in Salzburg, Austria, the birthplace of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Mozart's operas are a focus of ...

production in 2012, interpreted the story and Schikaneder's libretto "as one fthe great fairy tales of history ..., in which the emblematic and the playfulness are standing in the limelights". The opera was then also performed at the

Theater an der Wien The is a historic theatre in Vienna located on the Left Wienzeile in the Mariahilf district. Completed in 1801, the theatre has hosted the premieres of many celebrated works of theatre, opera, and symphonic music. Since 2006, it has served prim ...

and the

Konzerthaus Berlin The Konzerthaus Berlin is a concert hall in Berlin, the home of the Konzerthausorchester Berlin. Situated on the Gendarmenmarkt square in the central Mitte district of the city, it was originally built as a theater. It initially operated from 1 ...

(1803), the Opern- und Schauspielhaus Frankfurt (1806), the Staatstheater Nürnberg (1807) and other venues. In 1978, there was a production that was rearranged to be without spoken dialogue, conducted by

Wolfgang Sawallisch Wolfgang Sawallisch (26 August 1923 – 22 February 2013) was a German conductor and pianist. Biography Wolfgang Sawallisch was born in Munich, the son of Maria and Wilhelm Sawallisch. His father was director of the Hamburg-Bremer-Feuerversich ...

, directed by

August Everding August Everding (; 31 October 1928; Bottrop, Germany – 26 January 1999; Munich) was a German opera director and administrator. He studied at the Universities of Bonn and Munich, where launching his career in the 1950s. He was a member of the Ro ...

, and with stage design by Jürgen Rose in the

Cuvilliés Theatre The Cuvilliés Theatre () or Old Residence Theatre (''Altes Residenztheater'') is the former court theatre of the Residenz in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. History Elector of Bavaria Maximilian III Joseph (reg. 1745–1777) commissioned the co ...

, Munich. In September 2002, it was performed at

Chemnitz Opera Theater Chemnitz is a German municipal theater organization based in Chemnitz. Performances of opera, ballet, plays, symphonic concerts, and puppet theater take place in its three main venues: * ''Opernhaus Chemnitz'' (for opera, ballet and musica ...

with stage direction by Sabine Sterkin, costume and set design by Martin Rupprecht, and music direction by Fabrice Bollon. In August 2012, the opera was presented for the first time at the Salzburg Festival, in the courtyard of the residence of the Prince Archbishop of Salzburg, conducted by

Ivor Bolton Ivor Bolton Ivor Bolton (born 17 May 1958) is an English conductor and harpsichordist. Early life and education Bolton was born in Blackrod, Greater Manchester, England. He studied at Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School, Blackburn and Clare C ...

and directed by Alexandra Liedtke. In October 2013, the opera was performed in USA for the first time, by New York City's Amore Opera, the small opera company which emerged after Amato Opera closed.

Roles

Synopsis

After fighting against fire and water there are still two elements for Pamina and Tamino which are not defeated: the air and the earth. The Queen of the Night works with Tipheus to separate the engaged couple while Monostatos tries to force the love of Papagena.

Act 1

The opera opens as Pamina and Tamino prepare for their wedding ceremony. Pamina's mother, the Queen of the Night, laments the marriage and disguises the three Ladies into

Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is often called Earth's "twin" or "sister" planet for having almost the same size and mass, and the closest orbit to Earth's. While both are rocky planets, Venus has an atmosphere much thicker ...

Adonis In Greek mythology, Adonis (; ) was the mortal lover of the goddesses Aphrodite and Persephone. He was considered to be the ideal of male beauty in classical antiquity. The myth goes that Adonis was gored by a wild boar during a hunting trip ...

, and their Page before telling them to distract the couple long enough for Tipheus to disrupt the wedding. Sarastro announces that the young couple must complete the trial of the labyrinth before their wedding can take place. Tamino promises to play his magic flute so that Pamina will not get lost, and the young lovers enter the trial. While in the labyrinth, however, Pamina's mother separates her from Tamino saying that she has promised Pamina in marriage to Tipheus. Meanwhile, Papagena has wandered away and Papageno sets off to look for her. Along the way, he finds a small village with an older Papageno and Papagena, who are revealed to be his parents, with several young Papagenos and Papagenas who are introduced as his younger siblings. The Papagenos find and capture Monostatos, who is trying to trick Papagena into falling in love with him. The Papageno family is about to kill Monostatos when he promises Papageno a

moorish The term Moor is an exonym used in European languages to designate the Muslim populations of North Africa (the Maghreb) and the Iberian Peninsula (particularly al-Andalus) during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a single, distinct or self-defi ...

girl in reward for setting him free. Monostatos is then pardoned and the scene shifts back to Pamina and Tamino trying to find each other.

Act 2

This act opens with Papageno and Papagena celebrating their wedding. Unfortunately, this is when Monostatos chooses to make good on his bargain with Papageno which causes Papagena to run off with Monostatos in a fit of anger at Papageno's betrayal. Papageno sets off to find Papagena and rescue her from Monostatos and is instead co-opted into rescuing Pamina from her mother. He finds Pamina, but is not fast enough to prevent the Queen's three Ladies from stealing Tamina to the clouds. With the help of three genii, Tamino is able to ascend to the clouds, play his flute, and coax Pamina back to earth. The Papagenos once again capture Monostatos, freeing Papagena in the process, while Tamino and Tipheus agree to a duel for Pamina's hand in marriage. Tamino wins the duel, and everyone celebrates his marriage to Pamina.

Goethe's sequel

There is another sequel to the original ''Magic Flute'', also named '' Der Zauberflöte zweyter Theil'', a libretto fragment by

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Johann Wolfgang (von) Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German polymath who is widely regarded as the most influential writer in the German language. His work has had a wide-ranging influence on Western literature, literary, Polit ...

, intended to be set to music by

Paul Wranitzky Paul Wranitzky (Czech: Pavel Vranický; 30 December 1756 – 29 September 1808) was a Moravian-Austrian classical composer. His half brother, Antonín, was also a composer. Life Wranitzky was born in Neureisch ( Nová Říše) in Habsburg Mora ...

References

External links

*
Variations for Pianoforte
by

Joseph Wölfl Joseph Johann Baptist Woelfl (surname sometimes written in the German form Wölfl; 24 December 1773 – 21 May 1812) was an Austrian pianist and composer of the late Classical period (music), Classical period. Life Woelfl was born in Salzburg ...

Bavarian State Library The Bavarian State Library (, abbreviated BSB, called ''Bibliotheca Regia Monacensis'' before 1919) in Munich is the central " Landesbibliothek", i. e. the state library of the Free State of Bavaria, the biggest universal and research libra ...

, Munich. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Labyrinth, Das Compositions by Peter Winter German-language operas Works based on The Magic Flute Singspiele Operas 1798 operas Operas set in mythological places