For the first time in Asia, opera fans and music lovers outside Japan will be able to enjoy world-class opera on the big screen in High Definition (HD) digital format. That will take place in Singapore, starting Aug 31, as Golden Village VivoCity screens the New York Metropolitan Opera’s productions of Tan Dun’s The First Emperor and Mozart’s The Magic Flute.

UrbanWire caught an early preview of Julie Taymor’s highly anticipated new production of The Magic Flute, or Die Zauberflöte in Mozart’s native German, and came away spellbound. First premiered in Vienna back in Sep 30, 1791, The Magic Flute is an opera consisting of 2 acts composed to a libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder, in the form of a singspiel – a popular genre of opera that includes both singing and spoken dialogue.

When Taymor’s production of The Magic Flute premiered at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts last year, it opened to a packed Friday night audience, and based on Golden Village’s preview, it’s not difficult to see why.

Word has spread far beyond the world of opera about the extravagant stage effects, elaborate costumes, exotic visual flair and colourful world that Taymor, the Tony Award winning director best known for her popular 1997 Broadway musical The Lion King (an adaptation of the film), injected into one of the most beloved works in the operatic repertoire.

Like all operas, The Magic Flute tells of a story about a journey filled with obstacles to be overcome.

In this case, the story is simple. Sarastro, the wise priest of Isis and Osiris, has taken Princess Pamina to the temple for the purpose of releasing her from the influence of her mother, the Queen of the Night.

The queen induces the young Prince Tamino, who is saved by 3 ladies in the service of the Queen when he faints from a serpent, to go in search of the princess and free her from the power of Sarastro.

Along the way, he has a companion, the bird catcher Papageno. The Prince accomplishes the task and but decides to become the disciple of Sarastro, whose wisdom he has come to deeply admire after he had successfully freed the princess from Sarastro’s influence. After numerous obstacles and trials, Pamina and Tamino are reunited. The Queen of the Night the attacks the temple but is defeated and banished. Sarastro welcomes the new royal couple to the temple, and the final chorus sings of the triumph of courage, virtue and wisdom, in a typical fairy-tale ending.

In the hands of Taymor, this simple story is transformed into something magical, visually stunning, and exotic. First off, she incorporates into her opera production the artistic elements of masks and puppetry. Puppetry has never been part of the opera stage, but with The Magic Flute, Taymor challenges and defies history and introduces a refreshing approach to entertaining on stage. In the program notes, she writes that “the challenge of staging this archetypical journey is to bring to light the dimensions and layers of the characters and events”, such that “it does not become a generic fairy tale that is distanced and petrified, but rather, a tale that moves us on a visceral and immediate level”.

Rounding up the magical world that unfurls on stage is the brilliantly designed set by George Tsypin, the Kazakhstan-born architect, sculptor and stage designer. It is really quite a sight: a crystal-like kaleidoscope of walls, stairs and geometric shapes, each of which entered and exited the stage as the revolving turntable made its turns. In all, it added a magical and playful touch to the brilliant stage performance, especially with Matthew Polenzani as Tamino, and Nathan Gunn as Papageno.

But watching The Magic Flute at Golden Village VivoCity in HD format, despite its impeccable lifelike quality is still vastly different from watching it at the Lincoln Center, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. It was shot as how a movie would’ve been shot, with the various camera angles which bring more drama to the piece than watching it live at an opera house. You get close ups, you get panned shots, and brilliant editing, which highlight the beautiful set pieces and a better appreciation of the wonderful acting and singing. Of course, it also helps that you can munch on popcorn and sip your Coke while enjoying the opera!

Rating: 4.5/5

The New York Metropolitan Opera on big screen, exclusively at Golden Village VivoCity:

The Magic Flute runs August 31 – September 9

The First Emperor runs September 20 –26