I saw the Taymore production Katlaughing speaks of, and loved it (unfortunately, a trip to the bathroom meant I missed the last part. But maybe my station will rebroadcast it some day). Of course, I had Papageno's song stuck in my head for the next 24 hours, at least ;-).

And I think it was Igmar Berman's film that mother took me to see when I was about ten or so, in a real, live movie theater, on the big screen, and this has been one of my favorite operas ever since.

And yes, I thought Taymor's staging, choreography and puppets were particularly well suited to the fairy tale nature of the story -- I loved the dancing bears, and the giant bird, especially.