L.A. Opera adds performance of ‘Magic Flute’ even before it opens

When the Komische Oper Berlin debuted its edgy and nontraditional reimagining of Mozart’s “The Magic Flute,” combining live singing and hand-drawn animation, the 2012 run of 13 performances sold out in two days.

The U.S. premiere of the production, Nov. 23 at Los Angeles Opera, similarly is seeing strong ticket sales. So the company has added an additional performance, Dec. 13 at 8:30 p.m., bringing the total number of performances to 7.

“We knew ‘The Magic Flute’ would be popular with our audiences, but ticket sales have vastly exceeded our expectations,” L.A. Opera’s General Director Plácido Domingo said in a statement.

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Social media is fueling some of the buzz. A clip online of the Berlin production has gotten more hits -- 14,455 to date -- than any video that L.A. Opera has put up in the past, said company President and CEO Christopher Koelsch.

“It’s a very compelling visual and quite surprising for people -- it’s not what they expect to see in a promo video for an opera,” Koelsch said.

The production is a collaboration between Australian opera director Barrie Kosky, who is the Komische’s artistic director, and the British avant-garde theater company 1927, led by Suzanne Andrade and Paul Barritt. It debuted at the experimental Komische in late 2012. Andrade co-directs with Kosky and Barritt drew the animation.

Tickets, available on the L.A. Opera website, remain for all performances and range from $19 to $325.

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