Genre:

Opera

Release Date:

May 2020

Regions:

All Regions

Sound Format:

LPCM 2.0 & DTS Digital Surround 5.1

Ratio:

16:9 Anamorphic

Display:

NTSC

Subtitles:

EN, FR, DE, JP, KO

Catalog Number:

OA1304D

Mozart: Die Zauberflöte (Glyndebourne)

David Portillo (Tamino); Sofia Fomina (Pamina); Brindley Sherratt (Sarastro); Caroline Wettergreen (Queen of the Night); Björn Bürger (Papageno); Jörg Schneider (Monostatos); Michael Kraus (Speaker); Esther Dierkes (1st Lady); Marta Fontanals-Simmons (2nd Lady); Katharina Magiera (3rd Lady); Alison Rose (Papagena);

One of Mozart’s most enchanting works, Die Zauberflöte is a fairytale that uses familiar archetypes to ask provocative and difficult questions about religion, the nature of power, the bonds of family, and of course love.

Premiered just months before Mozart’s death, Die Zauberflöte in many ways represents a new departure for the composer. Catching the spirit of revolution in the air, Mozart turned his attention for the first time from court opera to popular opera, writing this singspiel (‘sung-play’) for a new and much broader audience.

Celebrated Canadian directing duo Barbe & Doucet make both their British and Glyndebourne debuts here with their new Die Zauberflöte, a veritable “theatrical feast of eccentricity.” (The Guardian). Ryan Wiggleworth conducts an outstanding cast including Russian soprano Sofia Fomina as Pamina, David Portillo as her beloved Tamino, Brindley Sherratt as Sarastro, and the ebullient Björn Bürger as Papageno.

Reviews

"Visually, it’s a theatrical feast of eccentricity. ... witty, irrepressible, unforgettable ..." (The Guardian ★★★★)

"... bold, inquisitive playing from the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment under Ryan Wigglesworth in the pit, and uniformly enjoyable singing up top. Bürger was the most handsome-sounding Papageno I’ve recently heard; David Portillo, as Tamino, found his inner hero ... and Sofia Fomina (Pamina) sang with a radiance that shaded over into ecstasy — every inch the daughter of a Queen of the Night who combined needlepoint vocal daring with a surprising vulnerability." (The Spectator)

"David Portillo’s sweetly sung Tamino is complemented by Sofia Fomina’s forceful Pamina, whose singing gains in beauty as the evening progresses; Björn Bürger’s Papageno is a commanding comic creation, while Caroline Wettergreen as Queen of the Night atones for some weird top notes in her first aria with some lovely singing later on. Jörg Schneider’s Monostatos makes an engaging pantomime villain; Michael Kraus’s Speaker has eloquent authority, and Brindley Sherratt conveys majestic power through the concentrated stillness of his Sarastro." (The Independent)

Extra features

The Magic of the Magic; Cast Gallery