Arthur, Oswaldine and Emmeline are good friends. But when the great wizard Merlin names his son Arthur as his successor, their friendship begins to falter. Oswaldine wants to prove that she is far more suited for the role than the timid Arthur. She pulls out every ploy in her playbook – fighting, magic, trickery – and calls upon the air spirit Philidel and the earth spirit Grimbald to aid her. Emmeline even gets dragged into the dispute over succession, becoming a pawn in the struggle.

Composer Gordon Kampe and director and librettist Fabiola Kuonen conjure up a magical forest full of spirits – featuring music by Henry Purcell, a ten-piece ensemble, five singers and a puppeteer. Do heroes and heroines really have to fight? Or is the greatest magic to be found in friendship, trust and the courage to see the world – and oneself – with new eyes?