“Enlightenment is useless without a sense of humor.”
So says Phil Kelsey, who plays the magic bells in the orchestra at Seattle Opera’s recent performance of Mozart’s Magic Flute.
It’s a playful magical opera deeply lain with Masonic undertones. It’s an opera about the healing power of music as well as an homage to silliness. Seriousness and playfulness are two themes continually juxtaposed throughout this masterpiece. The initiation rites of one princely prince and his soon-to-be princess are coupled with the antics of one goofy birdman, called Pappageno, who cares only about women, wine and the fun easy things of life.
It is said that in this opera Mozart identified the most with Pappageno.
Pappageno is the silliest character in all of opera. He makes this opera fun and light. He brings silliness and joy and laughter. He wears feathers. He jumps and spins when he’s excited. At times he can hardly contain himself. He shakes wildly with ecstasy when he finally meets his Pappagena. And they go on to procreate little green-haired babies.
Pappageno would be great fun at my laughter club. He’d embrace silliness as the best part of life. He shows what we all might feel from time to time but are too inhibited to act it out.
Photo: Seattle Opera/Rosarii Lynch
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