The Abduction from the Seraglio (film)

The Abduction from the Seraglio is a 1961 Australian TV version of Mozart's opera Die Entführung aus dem Serail and sung in English. It was one of a number of operas broadcast by the ABC in the early days of Australian television.

Cast

 * Rae Cocking as Constanze
 * Rosalind Keene as Blonde
 * Alan Light as Pasha Selim
 * Donald Smith as Belmonte
 * Neil Warren-Smith as Osmin
 * Gino Zancanaro as Pedrillo

Reception
The critic for The Sydney Morning Herald thought "it would be hard to pick a more unsuitable opera for television" than The Abduction from the Seraglio due to the length of the arias and lack of movement. But he felt the production was "handsome and remarkable" which proved that "no opera can be presumed unfit for television, provided the delight in visual ingenuities is matched by a genuine appreciation of its purely musical opportunities."