When award-winning soprano Celeste Lazarenko was a child she fell in love with singing and classical music.
She loved one particular album, Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute) featuring Gundula Janowitz and Lucia Popp, so much that she “literally wore the record out”.
Now she is performing in one of the leading roles of Princess Pamina in Opera Australia’s production of Mozart’s iconic final opera.
“I feel like I’ve known Pamina all my life,” Lazarenko said.
“When I was a kid I was really entranced by the childlike magic of (The Magic Flute), and then as I became an adult, what I saw really strongly was the love story between Pamina and Tamino.
“It was this idea of being infatuated with somebody without even seeing them and just knowing that they’re for you. I was kind of engrossed with that idea.
“My mother unfortunately passed away from cancer a couple of months ago, so the story (for me) then became about how adults let their children go through trials in life. And I feel very connected to that story at the moment.”
Opera Australia’s version of The Magic Flute, performed in English, is a brand-new reimagining of the work by director Kate Gaul, which received glowing reviews after its first season at the Sydney Opera House earlier this year.
Lazarenko is joined onstage by an all-star cast including critically acclaimed Indian-Australian tenor Shanul Sharma as Tamino and Melbourne-born Andrew Moran as comical birdcatcher Papageno, with music by Orchestra Victoria and the Opera Australia Chorus.
“This is a very heartfelt, very real version of (The Magic) Flute,” Lazarenko said.
“It doesn’t feel like there’s any pretension to this version; it’s not trying to preach to you, it’s trying to invite you into a show made of real people.”
Opera Australia’s The Magic Flute is at the Geelong Arts Centre November 9 to 16.
