BY KAREN BOSSICK

Mozart’s beloved “Die Zauberflote,” better known to American audiences as “The Magic Flute,” will be rebroadcast as part of the New York Metropolitan Opera’s Live in HD screenings.

The opera, shown during the 2017-18 season, will begin at 1 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 1, at the Metropolitan Big Wood Cinemas in Hailey. Doors open at noon and the tickets are $16, available at the door.

“Die Zauberflote” is a sublime fairy tale that moves between earthy comedy and noble mysticism. Mozart wrote it to appeal to audiences from all walks of life.

It concerns a Queen of the Night who persuades a young prince to rescue her daughter from captivity under a high priest. But the prince decides to join the high priest’s community upon learning of its high ideals. He and the Queen’s daughter eventually join the community and eventually vanquish the Queen.

The story is told in a Singspiel, or “Song-play” format characterized by separate musical numbers connected by dialogue and stage activity.

It runs the gamut from solemn to lighthearted. And Masonic imagery is used throughout the work, as  both the composer and the librettist were Freemasons.

Mozart died at 35, just three months after the premiere at a theater just outside Vienna. It was his last produced work for the stage.

The screening is a joint venture between Sun Valley Opera and the Metropolitan Big Wood Cinemas.