Opera Columbus' latest production is anticipated, but location is a mystery to audience
Opera Columbus’ latest production is a bold reimagining of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s “The Magic Flute.”
Opera leaders said they promise emotion, entertainment and plenty of high notes, but they can’t tell you where the performances April 19-28 are taking place.
You read that right − Opera Columbus is scheduled to perform “A Magic Flute Experience: The Temple” in a downtown venue that is being kept secret, even from ticket-buyers, until shortly before each show.
The idea is to deposit operagoers into an “immersive experience” far different than a traditional performance in a theater.
The Dispatch recently spoke with Opera Columbus General Director and CEO Julia Noulin-Mérat, who shared details about “The Temple” and dropped a few hints about where the production is to be performed.
What is “A Magic Flute Experience: The Temple?"
The production is a condensed and updated version of Mozart’s 1791 opera “The Magic Flute,” a fairy tale-like confection revolving around the efforts of Prince Tamino to retrieve the kidnapped Princess Pamina, the daughter of the Queen of the Night.
Many complications then ensue. This production is to feature both period-appropriate and modern dress.
Where do performances take place?
Opera Columbus won’t say where the performances are to take place, though it’s definitely not the troupe’s usual venue, the Southern Theatre.
“‘The Magic Flute’ is Mozart’s final opera,” Noulin-Mérat said. “At that time of his career, he was actually banished from all theaters. He wrote it for a beer hall. We wanted to kind of honor that spirit.”
Noulin-Mérat also makes reference to wanting to achieve “a nightclub feeling” in the show, which might give audiences some idea of what they’re walking into. One further hint: the venue is a relatively new space.
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“I’m pretty sure that 80% of the audience has never been to this space before,” Noulin-Mérat said. When we visited the space, they were still constructing it.”
Those interested in attending are directed to buy tickets at operacolumbus.org. Thirty-six hours before their show, ticket-buyers should receive an email revealing the location of the show. The email should also include a password necessary for admission.
Attendees must purchase tickets in advance; none are to be for sale at the door since, of course, the location won't be publicly disclosed. Only those 18 and older can attend.
What happens at the show?
Audiences are encouraged to arrive about an hour early at the venue. Upon arrival, they are to be guided through a kind of maze to the space where the performance should take place.
“We call it ‘The Temple,’ which is the setting of ‘The Magic Flute,’” Noulin-Mérat said.
Attendees can eat, drink and take in preshow performances, courtesy of The People’s Circus.
“There are knife-juggling (performers), stilt-walkers, aerialists,” Noulin-Mérat said. “We’re kind of pushing the fantasy world.”
Then, the 90-minute condensed version of “The Magic Flute” is to be performed.
“We have about 150 feet of catwalk that wraps around and through the audience,” Noulin-Mérat said. “(Audience members will) see people performing a foot away, or 20 feet away. That’s also part of the excitement − to be so close to the performer.”
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Who are the artists featured in the show?
Nine vocalists are featured in the cast, including Brian Wallin as Tamino, Bizhou Chang as Pamina and Erica Gabriel as the Queen of the Night.
Nine instrumentalists should provide musical support to the voices.
What would Mozart make of the production?
Even though Mozart died some 233 years ago, Noulin-Mérat said she feels the composer would approve of this innovative take on “The Magic Flute.”
“At the time, (Mozart) was pop culture,” she said. “I don’t want to say he was the Beyoncé and Britney Spears of his day, but in a way he was.”
At a glance
“A Magic Flute Experience: The Temple” is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. April 19-20, 2 p.m. April 21, 7:30 p.m. April 25 and 27, and 2 p.m. April 28 at a secret location in downtown.
Tickets cost $64 to $129. For more information, visit operacolumbus.org.