The Magic Flute (La Flauta Magica) by W. A. Mozart
The Overture: The Monster and the Prince While out hunting Prince Tamino loses track of time and gets lost in a new and rocky land. Too far from home, he looks for a place to sleep for the night. Behind him he is approached by a monster who has the body of a man and the head of a snake with glowing yellow eyes and a forked tongue that continuously hisses. The monster tries to attack Tamino and as Tamino runs away he falls and hits his head on a rock and is knocked out cold. The monster is about to kill Tamino when three dark haired women appear and, with swords and spears, kill the monster. The argue over who should go tell the Queen of this handsome Prince and in the end all three of them go.
The Birdman: Prince Tamino soon wakes up after being knocked out when he fell an hit his head on some rocks. I sees the monster covered in blood and is frightened until he realizes that the monster is dead. He looks around to figure out who could have killed this horrible creature. Out of the bushes comes a skinny little man with a beaky nose and feathers in his hair. He carried a basket on his back. The birdman tries to convince Tamino that he, with no weapons and only his strength, killed the monster. From behind this funny little man comes a shout of "PAPAGENO!" The three dark haired ladies had come to collect the birds that Papageno caught for the queen. Papageno handed the lady a bird and hoped for food and drink in return. Instead he was given water and a stone and one of the ladies padlocked his mouth closed so he couldn't tell any more lies. The ladies offered Tamino a picture of a beautiful girl and before the Prince could ask any questions the three dark haired ladies vanished.
This video will show what Panpipes sound like...
(Este video mostrará cómo suenan Panpipes ...)
The Queen of the Night: Tamino is quite taken with the picture that the three dark ladies gave to him. He thinks that the girl in the picture is so beautiful and he believes that he is in love with her! Suddenly the sky grows dark and there is a loud clap of thunder. Tamino feels a cold breeze around him and a bright flash of lightening flashes in front of him. When he opens his eyes he sees a woman in a dark coat standing before him. She explains that she is the Queen of the night an also the mother to the girl he holds the picture of. Her name is Princess Pamina. Sadly, Pamina has been kidnapped by a man named Sostrato and the Queen has not been able to get her back. She promises that if Tamino can rescue her that he will be allowed to marry her. Papageno has the lock removed from his mouth and vows to never lie again. Tamino and Papageno are also given magical instruments to help them on their journey. The two are told to look for the three boys on the edge of Sostrato's kingdom to help to guide them to the Princess. (The first video shows Papageno having his lock removed and then he and Tamino are given their magical instruments. The second video is the song that Tamino sings about how beautiful the Princess is. The song is in German and this version is sung by an opera singer named Placido Domingo. He was born in Spain but later moved to Mexico when he was 8 years old. He studied at a Conservatory in Mexico and became a very well known singer throughout the world.)
The Lyrics...
This portrait is enchantingly pretty, as no eye has ever seen before. I feel as if this divine picture were filling my heart with a new emotion. I don’t know what to call this feeling, but I feel it burning here like fire. Could this feeling be love? Yes, yes! This can only be love. O, if only I could find her! O, if only she stood before me already! I would… would… warmly and purely… what would I do? I would, in full delight, press her to my warm chest, and she would then be mine forever!
The Captive Princess: Tamino and Papageno can't decide which way they should go to look for Sorastro's Kingdom so they decide to split up. The new plan is that whoever finds the three boys should play their musical instrument so te other can find them. As Papageno walks through the woods he hears a scream. He tiptoes towards the sound and finds himself at a huge castle. He snuck up to an open door and found a beautiful girl being tied to a pillar by an evil looking man. Papageno was so scared that he let out a loud "SQUAWK", but to his surprise the man took one look at him and then dropped the rope and ran away. Papageno compared the girl to the picture that he had of Pamina. He decided that they were a match except for the fact that this girl had arms and legs and the girl in the picture did not. Silly Papageno! Papageno asked the girl if she was Princess Pamina and when she said she was he explained that he had been sent, along with Tamino, by her mother to find her. He explained that Tamino had already fallen in love with her picture. The Princess blushed when she heard this and asked where Tamino was. The problem was that Papageno had no idea!
The Prince's Magic Flute: While Papageno was rescuing the Princess Tamino found the thee boys. They led him to a tall building with three doors and told him that if he was patient and brave he would find what he was looking for. The three boys left and Tamino was alone. He approached the door to the left and pushed as hard as he could and heard a voice call out "Go back!" He tried the same thing with the door on the right and again heard "Go back!" When he went to knock on the door in the middle he was surprised when it opened on it's own. Out walked an old man in long robes. Tamino explained that he had come to rescue Princess Tamino from the evil sorcerer Sorastro. Surprisingly the old man explained that Sorastro was not a sorcerer but a wise ruler, and although he took Pamina he should not be questioned why he did it. The old man turned and closed the door. Tamino shouted to him, wondering if Pamina was still alive. The old man said that she was. Tamino took out his magic flute and began to play so that Papageno would come and find him. To his surprise many different animals came out of the woods and although the were wild animals they seemed to be tame. Soon after he heard Papagenos flute and he ran off to find him.
The Wise Ruler: Pamina and Papageno had escaped from the room that the princess was being held in. As the ran through the woods they heard the voice of Monostatos behind them. He was with several servants and they were holding coils of ropes to try to capture Pamina again. Neither the Princess nor Papageno knew what to do until the birdman remembered the bells that he had been given. He pulled the bells from his pocket and as he shook them he said "ring little bells and send them into a spin!" Instantly Monostatos and the servants began t spin around in a crazy dance. The two ran off again only to be stopped by a fanfare of trumpets. Sorastro stepped out of a chariot and Papageno ran to hide behind a tree. Pamina, however, knelt before Sorastro and begged for his forgiveness. She explained that she ran away because Monostratos had taken her and tied her up. Sorastro was very angy when he heard this and promised to punish Monostratos for his behavior. Pamina asked why she could not go back to her mother and she was told that she would understand soon enough. Soon they heard the snapping of twigs and Monostratos came out of the woods dragging a man who was holding tightly to a flute. Pamina knew instantly that it was Prince Tamino and they ran to each other, like long lost friends, and hugged tightly.
The First Trial: While Monostatos thought that he would be rewarded for bring Tamino to Sorastro, he was surprised when it was he who was instead arrested. Sorastro turned his attention to Tamino and welcomed him to his kingdom. He told Tamino that although he saw love in his heart for Pamina, Tamino would first need to prove his worth by completing three trials. Sorastro also indicated that Papageno would need to do these trials with him. Although Papageno began to complain that he was hungry and all he really wanted was food and a drink, Tamino agreed to do anything even if it would cost him his life. Papageno reminded everyone that he was NOT willing to do anything and that he would be very happy to have a three course meal, a drink, and a beautiful wife. Then he would be on his way. He was reminded that non of that would happen if he did not go with Tamino, and that in fact there was a beautiful girl named Papagena waiting for him at the end of his trials. The first trial was to have both Tamino and Papageno remain silent until they were given permission to talk. They both agreed, but inside Papageno was complaining that he was still hungry and thirsty. As the prince and the birdman sat on a bench to wait they saw an old woman approaching with a jug of water. Papageno forgot that he was supposed to stay silent and asked the woman for a drink. She stopped and offered him some water. Papageno asked her if she had a boyfriend. "Of course," she replied, "I do. And his name is Papageno!" Before Papageno could ask her name she disappeared.
The Queens Command: Pamina had fallen asleep waiting for Tamino to finish his trials to prove his love worthy of her. When she awoke she saw her mother. Pamina explained to the Queen of the Night where Tamino was and why she hadn't been rescued yet. Pamina asked her mother to help to protect her. Her mother told her that she couldn't protect her unles she had the Seal of the Seven Circles, which gave the queen her magical powers. She handed Pamina a dagger and told her that she, Pamina, must kill Sorastro. Pamina was horrified at the thought of killing someone. The queen disappeared. Pamina was confused. Should she hurt Sorastro, who had treated her kindly and whom she trusted, or should she be loyal to her mother? Sorastro approached and, startled, Pamina dropped the dagger. Pamina pleased with Sorastro to not punish her mother because she didn't think her mother really meant any harm. Sorastro explained that he understood why the Queen of the Night would want revenge, but that if her mother had the Seal of the Seven Circles she would use it for bad. He then said that they do not rule by hatred or revenge in his kingdom and that he forgave the queen.
Recognize these?
The Prince's Dilemma: While Pamina was resting the Old Man went to see Tamino and Papageno. He led them to a huge room and told them to listen for the sound of the trumpets and that when they heard them they should follow the sound. He reminded the two that they were still bound to silence. Papageno looked around and noteced a table piled high with food and drink. Forgetting (again!) that he was not allowed to talk he excitedly said, "Now that's more like it!" He began to eat as much as he could. Tamino, on the other hand, was worried he would never get to Pamina so he began to play his flute. Suddenly Pamina came into the room. She was surprised that Tamino didn't say anything. She didn't know that he had promised not to talk. She didn't understand and thought that Tamino was ignoring her on purpose and didn't love her. Papageno, surprisingly< did not say anything at all! Crying, Pamina ran back out of the room. Papageno cheerfully said, "See! I can keep quiet when I want to." They heard the sound of the trumpet and Tamino signaled to Papageno that they should follow it.
The Promise: Tamino left the banquet hall after hearing the call of the trumpets. He walked down a long hallway and came to a point where it divided to the left and right. Tamino chose to go right. As he continued down that hall he found there were several more doors to open until finally he opened a door to a room with Sorastro in it. Sorastro congratulated Tamino on passing the first trial and explained that before he could be with Pamina he had to pass two more trials. Pamina was brought into the room and she was nervous to se Tamino. She wasn't sure if Tamino still loved her. He reassured her that he still did love her and that he would prove this to her by completing the next two trials. Meanwhile Papageno was hoping to catch up with Tamino. They had left together but Papageno couldn't resist going back for just a few more grapes. He followed the same path as Tamino and when he had to chose to go left or right he too chose the hallway to the right. When he walked through the first door and headed towards the second he was surprised to see flames at his feet. He tried to ga back to the other door but there were flames there as well! Suddenly the ols man was standing beside him and the flames began to die down. He told Papageno that he was not strong like Tamino, and that he was certainly not wise. Papageno explained that he didn't really want to complete the trials and that he was happy with his life the way it was already. He told the old man that all he needed from life was wine and not wisdom, and a pretty little wife. The old man quickly disappeared and the the old woman who had offered him a drink of water came into the room. She said that she would would marry Papageno. Papageno didn't want to marry an old woman. She said that he should decide soon because otherwise he was destined to stay in that room forever! He quickly promised to marry her and as he did her old woman's face melted away and a beautiful girl was standing before him. She told him her name was Papagena. Papageno was very excited. The old man came back to get Papagena and he told Papageno that he was not worthy of her love. Papageno promised that nothing would keep them apart, even being swallowed by the earth! All of a sudden the ground below him began to shake and he quickly tumbled into a hole.
The Second Trial: Pamina was very sad to be seperated from Tamino again. She was wandering around the garden when she saw the 3 boys who had been Taminos guide through the forrest. She asked them to help her find Tamino. The three boys pointed to two high mountains, "That is where Tamino will be" they told her. Pamina found the base of the mountains and saw that there were 2 doors made of metal bars carved into the mountainside. She looked though one and saw water pouring down. Through the other there was a furnace of flames. She looked over and saw Tamino being guided by 2 guards towards the mountain of fire. She beged Tamino to take her with him. He agreed and they walked into the flaming room, with the heat growing hotter and hotter bu the second. Tamino took out his magic flute and began to play. As he did the flames began to die down and they saw a sloping path that headed to the mountain of water.
The Flying Machine: After the ground had given way Papageno found he had fallen into a large garden. He looked all around for Papagena but couldn't find her anywhere. He decided that life was just not worth living without her. He looked around one last time before giving up and noticed a large flying machine in the sky. The three boys climbed out of the machine and reminded Papageno about his magic bells. Excitedly Papageno began to play his bells, all the while looking around for his love. The boys told him to turn around and when he did he was thrilled to see Papagena standing there. "Pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-Papagena!" he yelled. "Pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-Papageno!" she called back.
The Third Trial: While Papageno and Papagena were reuniting in the garden Pamina and Tamino were still facing their final trial. They had come through the fire unharmed and now they had to survive the pouring down torrents of water surrounding them. They could hardly see in front of them and because it was so loud they could hardly hear each other. Pamina reminded Tamino to try his magic flute. As he bagan to play an opening appeared in the middle of the waterfall. They could see a large golden door ahead of them. Together they pushed the door open and walked into a room bathed in sunlight streaming through seven circular windows. At the far end of the room was a golden throne where Sorastro sat. He welcomed them to this most sacred chamber and announced that there would be a great celebration in honor of their love and courage. All through this final trial Papageno and Papagena were arguing over how many children they would have and whether they should be boys, girls, or both! Silly birds!
Revenge! I bet you though that after surviving the trials that it was going to be smooth sailing for Tamino and Pamina. Guess again! The Queen of the Night was still looking to gain access to the Seven Seals of the Sun and get revenge against Sorastro and Pamina. She told Monastatos that if he helped her that HE would be allowed to marry Pamina. This news made Monastatos very happy. The Queen, Monastato, and the 3 ladies went through the dark tunnel that led to the sacred chamber. As they forced the door open they were bathed in a blinding light that froze them in their spots. The ground opened up under them and they fell deep into the earth. The ground closed again and there was no trace they had ever been there.
The Celebration: Tamino and Pamina stared in amazement as they watched the dark hole close. Sorastro put his arm around Pamina reassuringly as he walked Tamino and her out to the courtyard. Sorastro announced to the people of his kingdom that the light had destroyed the evil and that they would celebrate the peace and harmony that had come to them. The people clapped and cheered, and above the noise they could hear the clear notes of Papageno's pan pipesand he and Papagena joined the celebration.