1-148-792 - Art Media - Biblioteque de l'Opera, Paris/Heritage Images

Fire and Water, The Magic Flute, 1816. Stage design by Karl Freidrich Schinkel for The Magic Flute (Die Zauberflote), showing fire and water, two of the ordeals that Tamino, the hero, had to undergo before being received by Sarastro the High Priest in the temple of Isis and Osiris. The opera by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) with libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder (1751-1812) was first produced in Vienna in 1791. The plot has overtones of Freemasonry. Some say Queen of the Night is based on the Empress Maria Theresa (1717-1780).