THE MAGICAL HOUSE
The Magical House is a digital production by Young Opera for The Royal Swedish Opera’s streaming platform Opera Play. In the programme, students and teachers go behind the scenes to discover the art forms and ongoing professional activities at the Royal Opera House in Stockholm. Through playful interviews with people who work at the Opera the audiences get to delve into their different areas of expertise. The series is addressed towards primary school children, but has managed to catch the interest of many other audience groups.
CHILDREN SHOWN SECRET ROOMS AT THE ROYAL OPERA HOUSE
When the pandemic hit in the Spring of 2020, Young Opera quickly reviewed their operations and produced the first three pilot episodes of The Magical House. The response was tremendous and Young Opera immediately saw the value in both continuing and developing this work.
Thanks to a generous donation from Signatur Foundation Sweden, Young Opera was able to make a new start, appointing a director and a scriptwriter to the production process.
Young Opera’s vision is to create inspiring material that is educational and artistic with a clear child-centred approach. To lead the audience into secret rooms and let them take part in the dedication, toil, sweat and passionate processes. Bringing children close and communicating to them the life of a living performing arts venue, from the culverts in the basement to the gold and velvet in the auditorium. All the things that make the Opera House a truly magical place.
INTEREST IN AND KNOWLEDGE OF ART FORMS
Through the series, Young Opera invite all children in Sweden to take part in the cultural treasure and heritage represented by the Opera House is and which all children have the right to experience. The aim of the production is to lower the entry threshold and create a sense of belonging to the national stage of the Opera House and to awaken interest in and impart knowledge of the art forms of opera, dance and orchestral music. In this way, they hope to inspire children and young people to continue to discover and immerse themselves in the world of music, dance and the arts.
The series uncovers a new area in each episode. It could be a room, a profession or a department at the Opera. In a playful and imaginative way, it highlights the craftsmanship, professionalism and collaborative work behind a performance. The format makes performing arts and music more accessible to young audiences.
A teacher’s guide is produced for each episode. The guide provides inspiration for further and more in-depth work in the classroom.
IMPRESSIVE RESPONSE
The primary target group is primary school children aged 7-10 and their teachers. However, the film series has also been well received by wider audiences – students of other ages, after-school supervisors as well as other stakeholders, including primary school headmasters, parents and other individuals.
The grant from Signatur Foundation Sweden enabled the production of episodes 4-8 and 10, as well as a trailer for the series.
A donation from The Karlsson Játiva Charitable Foundation, the founder of the Signature program in the UK, is now contributing to the continued production in 2023-24.
Watch all episodes of The Magical House here:
https://www.operanplay.se/performances/unga-pa-operan/
Links to more about The Magical House:
