Germany’s legendary Bayreuth opera festival, dedicated to the works of Richard Wagner, opened yesterday with extremely tight security in the wake of a series of deadly attacks in the country.
“We have to send a message” that fear will not stop the festival, film actor Michaela May told the DPA news agency at the event.
Out of respect for those killed or wounded in attacks over the last week in Ansbach, Munich and Wuerzburg – all in the state of Bavaria – organizers cancelled the lavish banquet that traditionally follows the first performance of the festival.
Also cancelled was the usual red carpet procession.
The 140-year-old festival, one of the highlights of Germany’s social and cultural calendar, opened with a performance of Wagner’s final opera, Parsifal in a new production by German director Uwe Eric Laufenberg.
Inside the theatre, a message projected on the curtain said: “The Bayreuth festival dedicates today’s performance to all victims of the violent acts in recent days and to their loved ones.”
Tighter security on Bayreuth’s mythic Green Hill – on which the world-famous Festspielhaus festival theatre stands – has been in place since the start of rehearsals in June.
Town authorities called for stepped-up measures following suggestions that this year’s production of Parsifal might be perceived as critical of Islam, a charge denied by director Laufenberg.
Unlike past editions of the festival, all bags and cushions have been banned from the auditorium and cloakrooms while patrons have to carry photo ID with them at all times.
Meanwhile, the approach road up the Green Hill to the Festspielhaus has been blocked to cars.
Star tenor Klaus Florian Vogt, who is singing the title role in Parsifal, was stopped and questioned by security personnel during a rehearsal break, because he was wearing army fatigues as part of his costume.
The festival runs from July 25 until August 28 with 30 performances of seven different operas.