Die Zauberflote at Theater Basel

Mozart’s penultimate work is perhaps also his most puzzling one. Tamino’s escape and unconsciousness open up the first act. When he is awoken with the image of Pamina he is sent into a varied and contradictory way of initiation. Accompanied by a magic flute and three boys, who are supposed to protect him, he walks between life and perceived death. Combined with the search for love, this fine line is represented by Papageno’s pragmatic way of living. Tamino is confused with the extreme emotional world of the Queen of the Night and Sarastro's virtuous brotherhood. Led by Pamina – Tamino finds his way into manhood, but at the price of the “star-flaming” queen being shattered.

The play is characterized by symbolism and various motifs by using spectacular means of theater. When it changes its perspective in the middle of the story it also reflects the period of unrest during its composition. As the "puzzle of the dialectic of enlightenment and demagoguery” (Ivan Nagel), as “a mirror of society between revolution and restoration and uncompromising exposure of the contradictions of life”, "with a critical potential of being utopia’’ (Wolfgang Willaschek) or " mixtum compositum of humanist manifesto and machine comedy united by music” (Stefan Kunze) Mozart's Magic Flute continues to be a challenge for new scenic interpretation.

The new production Die Zauberflöte is kindly supported by FUCHS PETROLUB AG and Dr. Manfred und Lilo Fuchs