Mini Magic Flute – Cast, Doncaster

Music: after Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Libretto: John Savournin

Director: Rosie Kat

John Savournin’s totally delightful little show based on The Magic Flute, skilfully directed by Rosie Kat for Opera North, contains enough of the original to fix the idea that opera can be fun in the minds of the 4-7 year olds at whom it is aimed as well as charming them with attractive puppets, silly jokes and plenty of chances to dance to the magic bells.

It begins surprisingly close to Mozart’s opera. Prince Tamino is set upon by a dragon, but escapes. He meets the Queen of the Night’s birdcatcher, Papageno, and tells him of his mission to find the beautiful princess Pamina. To aid him the forest animals have given him three gifts: a magic flute (which he can’t quite work out), magic bells (which he passes on to Papageno) and all the audience as his friends.

That’s as far as it goes in terms of following Mozart. Pamina has never left the forest, fights off an assault from the dragon and has no need of rescuing, thank you very much. The birds have all hidden away in the depths of the forest and the Queen of the Night gives Papageno warning that he will lose his job if he can’t supply more birds that day. A bit of bird imitation from the audience and the sound of the magic flute bring the birds out from hiding and the Queen of the Night relishes the thought that they will soon decorate her coat.

However, she is persuaded of their beauty, relents and that’s where it ends, with painless lessons in female independence, protection of the environment and the importance of friendship.

Bek Palmer’s stage design is simple as befits a show that is going into a miscellany of places: a divisible chunk of attractive woodland and a chair for Valerie Barr to show off her ability as Tamino’s court musician with her agile accordion accompaniment. When it comes to puppets, however, Palmer goes to town: a fierce dragon full of teeth (manipulated by whoever’s free), three large and colourful birds who go for a chat with the audience and a magic rabbit, something Mozart forgot to include.

Three young singers interact with the audience while displaying their opera credentials in song. Nia Coleman pulls off the unlikely double of Pamina and the Queen of the Night, giving us a brief glimpse of the Queen’s famed top notes while characterising her as a TV celebrity. Andrew Henley is as bumptious as you expect of a Prince until transformed by the power of friendship. Papageno, always the scene-stealing role in the opera, never fails to do the same her, Andrew Randall’s blend of timidity and indignation a delight.

The Magic Flute is known for its mix of glorious tunes in a variety of styles, even pseudo-folk song, and the songs here, all, with one exception, by Mozart (shortened, of course), are never above the audience’s head.

Reviewed on 27th June 2026. Touring widely.