On Saturday night at the Napa Valley Opera House, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart came to life on a Napa stage in “Mozart’s Magnificent Voyage.”

In a three-day celebration of the 250th anniversary of the great composer’s birth, the weekend opened Friday with “Dance Through Time” and concluded on Sunday with the acclaimed 13-year-old pianist Peng Peng playing Mozart as well as other masters’ works, but Saturday night, tucked in between, was “Mozart’s Magnificent Voyage.” And if that wasn’t enough to whet Mozart lovers’ interests, “Mozart’s World,” a private collection of late 18th-century art objects, was on display in the Cafe Theatre.

The performance presented by originator and Executive Producer Susan Hammond finds Mozart (Elic Bramlett) and his young son Karl (Natalie Berg) engaged in a rather heated discussion over whether Karl must return to a boarding school when the boy’s heart, soul and dearest wish is to remain at home with his mother and famous father.

With the outstanding 22-piece Golden Gate Orchestra performing many of Mozart’s best loved works, highlighted by “The Magic Flute,” actors Bramlett and the energetic and oh so talented Berg were just right.

The actors’ emotions ran the gamut from anger to love as a true and touching father-son relationship began to take shape. Karl is given a chance to understand his father’s extraordinary life, first as a child prodigy and later as a man applauded and admired by kings and even a pope. Karl also begins to understand his dad’s pressures from family and fame, his passion for composing and the common bonds they share.

In the end, Karl realizes that he is loved and Mozart realizes that his son is correct and should be closer to his father throughout their lives — so no boarding school for the boy. Ironically, although the pair are not aware of it, there is little time left. Just two months after Mozart takes his son to a performance of “The Magic Flute,” a beautiful composition which tells the age-old story of good conquering over evil, Mozart dies at 35.

At the conclusion of the performance, producer Susan Hammond opened up a question and answer forum by directing her questions at the scores upon scores of young children in the audience.

To Susan’s question as to what happened in the world just 20 years after Mozart died in 1756, a very bright boy seated a row in front of me said, “America was born on the Fourth of July in 1776!” He got applause for his answer and rightly so. Then a little girl asked why the wig Mozart wore was so white. Susan Hammond explained how they were kept powdered. Another girl wondered how the wigs stayed on and learned that pork fat did the trick. Finally, another young boy brought down the house with his “Didn’t those wigs smell?” Susan laughed, nodded and then said, “That’s why the French invented perfume.”

After the performance in the Cafe, children were permitted to try out the instruments used even in Mozart’s time, instruments like flutes, violins, cellos, clarinets and brass trumpets. It was a kid on brass who played what sounded like a mix of “Charge of the Light Brigade” and “Lover Come Back to Me.”

The McLoughlin family from Napa were there with their children. Nine-year-old Michael loved everything about the show and 5-year-old twins Jane and Will liked the boy with the magic flute, or was he a she?

The children of the de Leuze family, mom, Natalie; dad, Brett; and Lexi, 4, Kayla, 6 and Connor, 9 enjoyed the music, the ever-changing colored lights and of course the magic flute. Last, but not least, Lexi showed me her dolly and said that “Rainbow” and she had been to the theater four times as she held up four fingers.

Just as an aside, mom Natalie mentioned that the family has scores of CDs, music of the masters and 9- year-old Connor’s favorite piece is Tchaikovsky’s “Swan Lake.” But Natalie quickly added that Connor enjoys Mozart too.

As my wife and I walked out of the Opera House and were about to cross Main Street headed for our car, a lady also about to cross the street smiled a “Well, Mozart finally made it to Main Street in Napa town.” How right she was!

Ev Parker can be reached at evjenpar@mailbug.com or 224-9956.