BAM hosted a prodution of "The Magic Flute" that originated at De Munt/La Monnaie, the Royal Opera House of Belgium. The white line animations decorating the show curtain and the subsequent shadow play film clips offered no new insight to the timeless Mozart piece, but do provide winsome entertainment, especially in moments that need it. Using wildlife fantasy isn't anything new to productions of Flute. Where Julie Taymor had dancing polar bears, William Kentridge opted for somersaulting rhinos. The stiffly directed production was decorated with seemingly 19th Century retro costumes and the singers were just O.K. The only standout was the terrible Queen of the Night, who not only was singing in the wrong fach, she was singing the wrong notes. And why is it that the BAM programs never list the name of the librettist? Poor dead white guy Schikaneder.
