Mozart is coming back to life in the Opera Program’s newest show, “The Magic Flute.” The 18th-century opera opens Thursday, Feb. 27 at 7:30 p.m in Smothers Theatre.
In the opera, Prince Tamino, played by senior Vocal Performance major John Silva, is tasked with saving the Queen of the Night’s daughter Pamina from the high priest Sarastro. Alongside Papageno, a quirky bird catcher played by senior Gannon Hays, Tamino undergoes a series of initiation trials to instead join the high priest Sarastro’s enlightened community, turning against the Queen throughout his journey.
Silva said he thinks of “The Magic Flute” as a coming-of-age story, which he resonates with at this point in his life.
“Tamino has this progression from being sort of this scared, young boy to growing up to be a man, growing up to find a place, find his place in the world, and I’m still on that journey,” Silva said. “I’m sure Tamino would be on that journey right now.”
Sung in German and spoken in English, the two-and-a-half-hour performance will bring together the Pepperdine University Orchestra and opera vocalists to tell a classic story of romance, tribulation and resilience. Pepperdine students have performed “The Magic Flute” four times in the past 30 years, most recently in 2016.
Non-German-speaking audience members will be able to follow along with the story through supertitles projected above the stage. Sophomore Vocal Performance major Miara Williams, who plays Pamina, said vocalists were required to take a German diction class.
“We have really good coaches that helped us, like, learn it and memorize the translation,” Williams said.
Silva said Director Keith Colclough has also ensured that they have proper German pronunciation. Colclough’s wife is a native German speaker.
Williams said playing a female character in a Mozart opera brought unique challenges.
“It’s kind of hard for women to have character at that time when this opera was written,” Williams said. “In a world where she seemingly has no choice to do what she wills and she’s just tossed around, there’s these little moments where she can show strength and she can show power in the character, and that is awesome for me to figure out.”
In the wake of today’s divisive political climate, Colclough said the opera’s plot feels more political than ever. Unlike other versions of “The Magic Flute,” the Queen isn’t defeated, but rather peace occurs between Sarastro and her faction.
“It’s not always presented exactly that way, but we’re ending with a moment of reconciliation,” Colclough said. “Maybe it’s just what I need now, but I just have a feeling our audience might as well.”
Colclough, who will be the faculty-in-residence for this year’s Heidelberg Summer Music Program, said “The Magic Flute” is an opera that gives treble-voiced students an opportunity to showcase their talents. He thanked Flora L. Thornton, whose endowment helps pay for the Pepperdine Opera Program’s productions each year.
“10 million things are happening at once, and for an audience to be kind of engrossed in the story, many things have to be done at the right time with the right people, and the Holy Spirit has to intervene sometimes and all the time to kind of help us through,” Silva said.
Due to the Palisades Fire, in-person rehearsals were not able to begin until the second week of the semester. On top of that, remote instruction due to mudslides earlier this month resulted in the cancellation of some rehearsals, according to Colclough.
Although this posed challenges for the production, Silva said students remained vigilant in bringing together the opera in time for opening night.
“I think everybody’s stepped up and really taken it upon themselves in that lack of rehearsal,” Silva said.
The show will run through March 1 in Smothers Theatre. Tickets cost $23 for the public and $13 for students.
_________________________________
Follow the Graphic on X: @PeppGraphic
Contact Henry Adams via email: henry.adams@pepperdine.edu
