BERLIN — A German film producer's version of Richard Wagner's
Parsifal was greeted with boos and shouts from the audience and sharp
criticism in newspapers following its debut at Berlin's Staatsoper.
Reviewers on Monday [March 21] attacked Bernd Eichinger's production as dull and confused, singling out its use of video clips including the Earth seen from space and pagan temples.
The capital's Berliner Morgenpost daily said Saturday's premiere was greeted by "a concert of boos."
The staging included scenes in modern-day New York in an apparent reference to the September 11 attacks, a marked departure from the traditional medieval Spanish setting. The contrast was very apparent with the depiction of exploding high-rises. Kundry, one of the main characters, is led around on a dog leash by the sorcerer Klingsor.
The Berliner Zeitung reported that the applause afterward dwindled in a few minutes to about 30 people still applauding when the performers took their final bows.
Eichinger has been a prominent figure on Germany's film scene for decades, most recently producing The Downfall, a portrait of Adolf Hitler's final days in his Berlin bunker. It was nominated in the best foreign language film category at this year's Oscars.
However, his excursion into opera met with little enthusiasm from domestic critics. "Eichinger showed a video for every state of the soul, degrading Wagner's music to the status of a soundtrack," the daily Süddeutsche Zeitung wrote.
It's the first time the Staatsoper has done Parsifal, Wagner's last
work, in 13 years. The next performance of Eichinger's Parsifal is
set for March 28.
