Editor’s note: Laura Parkinson is part of Critic’s Corner, an arts criticism program at Lawrence High School. She’ll be offering a student perspective on several Lied Center productions this season.

A night at the ballet took on a whole new meaning with “The Magic Flute,” performed by Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet on Friday night at the Lied Center. Mozart’s opera mixed with ballet may seem like an eclectic twist on two old art forms; however, it was a blend that sometimes produced a discordant, uneven match, like a blind date gone wrong.

The story of the opera centers around Tamino, a man seeking to save his love Pamina, who was kidnapped by her father. Tamino’s friend Papagano tries to help him on his search with the help of three tempting sirens (much to his jealous wife, Papagana’s, dismay). Pamina falls in love with Tamino, but both must complete a series of tasks, including her building a wall of glass, before they can be together. The choreographer, Mark Godden, plays this ballet as a domestic drama with the couples constantly getting involved in trouble – a Mozart-ian soap opera.

Opera’s contribution here to the delicate art of the ballet was almost too much. Although opera does give the ballet a story to follow, it is almost too complicated to follow without the manual. The need for Cliffs Notes for the plot takes away from the performance and leaves nothing to the imagination.

The vocals also were distracting. The beauty in the dance is enjoyable without being overpowered by strong opera. When the baritone fills the auditorium with his deep, mellow sound, the audience is surprised to see the nimble, jumping Papagano, whose physical presence is so different from that of the singer. Perhaps using Mozart’s music without the vocals would have solved this problem.

The dancing was masterful. The audience could get so lost in what was happening on stage that they might have forgotten they are watching a ballet. With free-flowing form, the dancers moved around the stage with ease. The choreography blended modern and new-age movements, breaking ballet traditions. Throughout the performance, the dancers were in sync with one another, producing consistent and fun dance sequences. The acting was masterful as well. It was the blending of these moves with the overpowering sounds of opera that made the performance fall short of cohesive.

It still was a lot of fun to watch. When amorous Papagano fails his fidelity test, the sirens lock up his pants to prevent any mishaps. Also, long coils are used more than once to represent sensual significance. The props were fun as well. Many were completely oversized, including a TV and a night light 300 times normal size.

By itself, each performance element – dancing, music and acting – was impressive. Together, however, the performance went over the top. Maybe a night at the ballet and a night at the opera should be handled separately.