An art installation at the Bayreuth Festival featuring over 100 golden Wagners has gone missing. Per Art News, the piece, entitled “You’re Welcome,” which features 115 gold-painted statues of the Richard Wagner, each standing 19-inches tall, “mysteriously disappeared.” Per the report, the artist Ottmar Hörl, who calculates that “You’re Welcome” is worth around €12,000 ($13,200), believes that the pieces were {…}
The Bayreuth Festival has canceled the August 2, 2023, Festpiel Open Air concert. The company took to social media and said, “Due to the bad weather forecast and cool temperatures, we are unfortunately forced to cancel the Festspiel Open Air planned for today at 8 p.m. in the Festspielpark. We very much regret this and ask for your understanding.” The {…}
The Bayreuth Festival has announced upcoming productions for 2024 and 2025. The company announced that in 2025 it will present Matthias Davids’ new production of “Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg” under Daniele Gatti. Georg Zeppenfeld will sing the title role with Michael Spyres as Walter von Stolzing. Tobias Kratzers directs “Tannhäuser” in 2024 under music director Nathalie Stutzmann, while “Tristan und {…}
The Bayreuth Festival is set to present Wagner’s “Rienzi” in 2026. Katharina Wagner said in a text that she believes that “Rienzi” is now part of the canon even though Wagner himself had not found the opera worthy of Bayreuth. She said, “And I’m sure Richard Wagner, in his artistic restlessness, would have enjoyed it from today’s perspective.” “Rienzi” made {…}
This week audiences are in for rarely performed works by unknown composers as well as a complete recording of Wagner’s final installment of the Ring Cycle. Here is a look: Nikolay Myaskovsky: Vocal Works, Volume Two: Complete Songs for Baritone and Piano Ilya Kuzmin and Dzambolat Dulaev perform the works of Nikolay Myaskovsky alongside pianist Olga Solovieva. The new album {…}
Joseph Calleja has withdrawn from his upcoming performances of “Parsifal” at the Bayreuth Festival. In a statement, Calleja said, “Due to a persistent throat infection, I was advised by my doctor to withdraw from the current production of Parsifal here in Bayreuth. Goes without saying that this was a very hard decision to take, and I am so sorry for {…}
Stephen Gould has canceled his participation at the Bayreuth Festival. The company said that Gould has had to cancel this year’s Bayreuth Festival on urgent medical advice. As a result, Andreas Schager will sing the role of Siegfried in “Götterdämmerung” while Clay Hilley will sing the title role in “Tristan und Isolde.” Finally, Klaus-Florian Vogt will sing the title role of {…}
The Bayreuth Festival has announced cast changes for its productions of “Götterdämmerung” and “Die Walküre.” The company said that “unfortunately, Emily Magee is unable to sing the parts of Sieglinde and Gutrune due to an infection that has not yet fully recovered.” As a result, Elisabeth Teige has agreed to take on the part of Sieglinde and Aile Asszonyi will {…}
The Bayreuth Festival has announced a cast change for two productions. The company said that due to health reasons Dmitry Belosselskiy has canceled his participation in the festival. As a result, Mika Kares will take over the role of Hagen in the “Götterdämmerung” and Günther Groissböck in the role of Landgrave Hermann in the “Tannhäuser.” Kares will make his debut {…}
The Bayreuth Festival has announced a cast change for its production of “Der Fliegende Holländer.” The company said, star baritone Michael Volle will return to the 2023 Bayreuth Festival in the title role of “Der Fliegende Holländer” and that John Lundgren has canceled his participation for personal reasons. “Prof. Wagner expresses her extraordinary gratitude to Michael Volle, who was last seen {…}
The German Minister of State for Culture has called on the Bayreuth Festival to reform. Per BR Klassik, Claudia Roth, who holds the position, did not specify what she meant when she called for reform but did note that festival management had to “design the general conditions of the festival in such a way that artistic excellence can be achieved.” {…}