Nazi-Themed Wagner Opera Tannhauser Cancelled After Holocaust Scenes Leave Audience Seeking Medical Help
Nazi-Themed Wagner Opera Cancelled After Holocaust Scenes Leave Audience Seeking Medical Help
Sara C Nelson — Huffington Post UK
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A modern version of Richard Wagner’s Tannhauser has been cancelled after members of the opening night audience were left so distressed they had to seek medical help.
Some viewers were treated for shock after witnessing the “harrowing” scenes involving a concentration camp during the Holocaust, at the Deutsche Oper am Rhein in Dusseldorf.
The performance showed scenes of Jews being executed and dying in chambers, violent rape and suicide by self-immolation, Der Spiegel reports.
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Cast perform in a scene of the opera Tannhauser during a dress rehearsal dated April 30
It also featured a family being shown having their heads shaved and then being shot.
The production has now been cancelled and the opera will be performed only as a piece of music, the BBC says.
It quotes a statement from the opera house, which says: “With paramount concern, we note that some scenes were depicted very realistically,” causing “psychological and physical stress” to some audience members.
It adds “intensive conversation” was held with director and actor Burkhard C Kosminski about possible changes to the production, but “he refused to do this for artistic reasons.
“Of course, we have to respect – and also for legal reasons – the artistic freedom of the director.”
Tannhauser
(01 of07)
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The photo provided by Deutsche Oper am Rhein in Duesseldorf, western Germany, shows Markus Eiche, left, as Wolfram and Thorsten Gruembel as Landgraf performing in front of the choir in a scene of the the opera 'Tannhaeuser' during the dress rehearsal on April 30, 2013. The modern production of Richard Wagners opera Tannhauser has caused a stir in Germany because of Nazi-themed scenes showing people dying in gas chambers and a family getting their heads shaved and executed. A spokeswoman for the Duesseldorf opera house said Tuesday that members of the audience booed and were shocked by Saturdays, May 3, 2013 opening performance. (AP Photo/Deutsche Oper am Rhein, Hans Joerg Michel) (credit:AP)
(02 of07)
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The photo provided by Deutsche Oper am Rhein in Duesseldorf, western Germany, shows Elena Zhidkova as Venus in front of the choir in a scene of the the opera 'Tannhaeuser' during the dress rehearsal on April 30, 2013. The modern production of Richard Wagners opera Tannhauser has caused a stir in Germany because of Nazi-themed scenes showing people dying in gas chambers and a family getting their heads shaved and executed. A spokeswoman for the Duesseldorf opera house said Tuesday that members of the audience booed and were shocked by Saturdays, May 3, 2013 opening performance. (AP Photo/Deutsche Oper am Rhein, Hans Joerg Michel) (credit:AP)
(03 of07)
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The photo provided by Deutsche Oper am Rhein in Duesseldorf, western Germany, shows Markus Eiche, left, as Wolfram and Elisabet Strid as Elisabeth in a scene of the the opera 'Tannhaeuser' during the dress rehearsal on April 30, 2013. The modern production of Richard Wagners opera Tannhauser has caused a stir in Germany because of Nazi-themed scenes showing people dying in gas chambers and a family getting their heads shaved and executed. A spokeswoman for the Dusseldorf opera house said Tuesday that members of the audience booed and were shocked by Saturdays, May 3, 2013 opening performance. (AP Photo/Deutsche Oper am Rhein, Hans Joerg Michel) (credit:AP)
Previous Staging of 'Tannhauser'(04 of07)
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French tenor Gilles Ragon (C) performs during a rehearsal of the Richard Wagner's Opera 'Tannhauser', directed by Jean-Claude Berutti and conducted by Klaus Weise, on April 22, 2009 at the Grand Theatre in Bordeaux, south-western France. (JEAN-PIERRE MULLER/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
Previous Staging of 'Tannhauser'(05 of07)
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French mezzo soprano Sylvie Brunet (G) and French tenor Gilles Ragon perform during a rehearsal of the Richard Wagner's Opera 'Tannhauser', directed by Jean-Claude Berutti and conducted by Klaus Weise, on April 22, 2009 at the Grand Theatre in Bordeaux, south-western France. (JEAN-PIERRE MULLER/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
Previous Staging of 'Tannhauser'(06 of07)
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German conductor Klaus Weise waits for the begining of a rehearsal of the Richard Wagner's Opera 'Tannhauser', directed by Jean-Claude Berutti, on April 22, 2009 at the Grand Theatre in Bordeaux, south-western France. (JEAN-PIERRE MULLER/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
Previous Staging of 'Tannhauser'(07 of07)
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French mezzo soprano Sylvie Brunet (G) and French tenor Gilles Ragon perform during a rehearsal of the Richard Wagner's Opera 'Tannhauser', directed by Jean-Claude Berutti and conducted by Klaus Weise, on April 22, 2009 at the Grand Theatre in Bordeaux, south-western France. (JEAN-PIERRE MULLER/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
Tannhauser is traditionally a three-act opera set in medieval Germany, featuring a namesake bard and a singing contest at Wartburg Castle.
Michael Szentei-Heise, head of the Jewish community in Dusseldorf, told the Associated Press the production was "tasteless and not legitimate".
He added: "This opera has nothing to do with the Holocaust. However, I think the audience has made this very clear to the opera and the producer."
Members of the audience are said to have booed and banged doors as they left the building in protest on the opening night.
Wagner, who died in 1883, is associated with Nazism and was one of Adolf Hitler’s favourite composers
He is regarded as an anti-Semite and playing his music is still considered to be a taboo in Israel.