Jacksonville Symphony Readies Jacoby Symphony Hall for its Production of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s ‘The Magic Flute’

Jacksonville, Fla – The Jacksonville Symphony proudly announces that Opera returns to Jacoby Symphony Hall with Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s The Magic Flute. Conductor Kevin Fitzgerald, the musicians of the Jacksonville Symphony and prominent opera vocalists bring the classic fairytale to life in a symphonically staged production audiences will never forget April 28 at 7:30 p.m. and April 30 at 3:00 p.m. at the Jacksonville Center for the Performing Arts.

“The Jacksonville Symphony offers so many styles of music to our community, but our annual opera production is a special season highlight,” said Conductor Kevin Fitzgerald. “The whole family will love Mozart’s spellbinding music that accompanies Tamino and Papageno on their adventures to save Princess Pamina, find true love and defend good against evil. There is truly something for everyone to enjoy the beloved story of The Magic Flute.”

In addition to the world-class musicians of the Jacksonville Symphony, this production features a cast comprised of distinguished ed names in the opera world including Vanessa Croome, Hanna Brammer, Terrence Chin-Loy, Andrew Wilkowske, Tom McNichols and Brittany Fouché.

Also joining the Symphony is award-winning Stage Director Kristine McIntyre who has directed more than 100 operas across the U.S. with a focus on new, contemporary and American works. Some of her most recent directing credits include a film-noir style of Don Diovanni with Utah Opera, Palm Beach Opera among others; an Emmy-award winning production of Manon with Des Moines Metro Opera and Opera Santa Barbara and Le nozze di Figaro.

“It's been lovely planning a unique production in which I'm able to do some things I've never been able to do before and to make this production of The Magic Flute welcoming and inviting to all audiences,” said McIntyre.

The Magic Flute has been one of the most cherished operas worldwide since its debut in 1791 for the way it takes audiences on a journey of realization and discovering truth. The story follows three couples who dominate the plot: Tamino and Pamina; Papageno and Papagena; and The Queen of the Night and Sarastro. The first couple must undergo a series of trials assigned by the formidable Queen of the Night to determine and verify Tamino’s worthiness. Later, audiences discover that all it is not what it seemed from the offset, thus learning alongside the characters in real time.

While this production has been a fixture in opera houses around the world for more than 230 years, the Symphony distinguishes its revival through several, customized design features. Its production is “symphonically-staged,” a term coined by the Symphony, where musicians will be surrounded by actors on a specially-built elevated space on the stage of Jacoby Symphony Hall. There will also be 30-foot-tall screens that vividly project the enchanting, scenic elements that constitute its storybook setting and create a multi-sensory experience.

Additionally, The Magic Flute is traditionally sung in German, but the Symphony’s take will be performed in English, so it is immediately accessible to audiences.

McIntyre emphasizes that even if a listener is unfamiliar with opera, it brings together different facets of the performing arts for a breathtaking production that will captivate their attention from the first note to the last.

“I hope they [audiences] will discover, if they don't know it already, that opera is…engaging and open to everyone,” said McIntyre. “If you are a music lover, there is nothing better than actually seeing and hearing Mozart's music well-staged and well-sung, as he intended. If you are a theater person, then you will see how we can engage the eye and the ear together in our storytelling. I think opera is the most complete of the performing arts. It basically encompasses everything else, and I love sharing that with audiences.”

Tickets for The Magic Flute are on sale now. For more information, visit JaxSymphony.org.

About the Jacksonville Symphony
The Jacksonville Symphony is North Florida’s leading music nonprofit offering live performances at Jacoby Symphony Hall in the Jacksonville Center for the Performing Arts and other venues throughout the area. In addition, the Symphony provides music instruction for youth and operates the Jacksonville Symphony Youth Orchestras. For more information about the Symphony, visit here.