NEW ROCHELLE, NY — George M. Davis Jr. Elementary School students were gushing recently about the fantastical opera, “The Magic Flute,” which they enjoyed in all its glory (even in an abridged version) at the Met.
“I liked the whole entire story,” said Jasleen Mendoza, one of the 38 fifth-grade orchestra, band and choral students who traveled to The Metropolitan Opera in Manhattan just before the holiday break. They attended a preview of the Julie Taymor production that has become a holiday tradition. At a little under two hours, it is about half the running time of Mozart’s 1791 original, but it retains the heart of the fairy tale with themes of true love and good versus evil.
“It’s like ‘Tangled’ a little bit,” said student Kerry Hunter, referring to the Disney animated take on Rapunzel. “The queen is like Mother Gothel.”
The students attended the show as part of the Metropolitan Opera Guild’s Access Opera program. Access Opera “engages students with the unforgettable experience of watching a performance live on the stage of the Metropolitan Opera House and provides teachers with resources for drawing connections across literature, social studies, foreign language, and the arts,” according to the guild’s website. Davis music teacher Regina Talbot has begun taking workshops in the program. She spoke with the students about the different aspects of putting on an opera.
“Hopefully, it will inspire them to keep studying their own instruments and participate in performing ensembles as they grow older,” she said.
Mendoza, who plays violin, was impressed by the way the orchestra’s instruments supported the singing. She also enjoyed the dramatic variations in opera music.
“Sometimes it can be nice and smooth and then it can get nice and fast,” she said. “It’s also romantic at the same time.”
Hunter, a singer, could identify the voices of the various characters.
“Tamino was a tenor and Pamina was a soprano,” Hunter said. “The Queen of the Night was also a soprano, but her voice could go super high.”
