This charming, short, fully-staged comic opera by a very, very young Mozart centers on a lad and lassie with remarkably similar names, who fall in love but are separated – at least briefly – by worldly enticements. The one-act opera about a shepherdess and the boy she loves was meant to serve as a gentle parody of the pastoral works that were all the rage onstage in the late 1700s, but it already displays Mozart’s uncanny ability to write vocal music that reveals his characters while delighting the audience.

Conducted by renowned British conductor/violinist Peter Manning, this early work of the master, created when Mozart was just 12 years old, also features a wise magician with questionable skills. Does he have “something up his sleeve” that will bring this couple back together?

12:30 pm — The lobby will open for fun activities including crafts.
2 pm — Bastien and Bastienne (Sung in English).