Which composer wrote the opera The Magic Flute, premiered in Vienna in 1791?

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart wrote the opera The Magic Flute, which premiered in Vienna in 1791.

Mozart composed the German-language singspiel during the final year of his life. Emanuel Schikaneder wrote the libretto and also played Papageno at the premiere. The work combines spoken dialogue with elaborate arias, ensembles, choruses, and orchestral writing.

The opera was first performed on 30 September 1791 at Schikaneder’s Theater auf der Wieden. Mozart conducted the performance, and it quickly became one of his most successful stage works. Its famous numbers include the Queen of the Night’s coloratura arias and Papageno’s comic songs.

The Magic Flute is sometimes confused with Don Giovanni or The Marriage of Figaro, two other major Mozart operas. Unlike those Italian-language works, The Magic Flute was written in German and belongs to the singspiel tradition, which alternates singing with spoken dialogue.