Although Bergman was in his mid-fifties when he directed this film, it was rooted in his youth. He first saw Mozart’s The Magic Flute at the Royal Swedish Opera in Stockholm when he was 12, and hoped to recreate it in his puppet theatre at home. Also, while still a child he fell in love with Stockholm's Drottningholm Palace Theatre, which he faithfully recreated in this film decades later. Bergman's childhood dreams remain respectful of Mozart's, with the Masonic initiation ceremonies depicted as an otherworldly fantasy involving a kidnapped princess, a vengeful Queen of the Night and a carefree wanderer.