Who says when the stage director has gone too far? The audience?
I was struck by this article in the New York Times about Frank Castorf, famous German director, and his new production of The Ring Cycle at Bayreuth.
First off, to direct at Bayreuth is an honor. The festival theater was built FOR The Ring Cycle, under the genius of Wagner himself, who is credited with pushing along and defining the role of the director in the modern theater.
And Frank Castorf is no unknown. He's run the Volksbrune theater in Berlin since 1992 and is known for his avante-guarde work. (I saw his Medea when I was in Berlin in 2009, the theater was being renovated so it was staged on the front steps of the theater: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESGluUOXDlc)
So when a director known for their desecration of text and insane directorial concepts is hired to direct THE RING CYCLE what do you expect? Sure, parts of it sound horrible to me. And sure, the audience booed. And there he stood, pointing at them. He wanted to make them angry. It's what he does!
So has he gone too far? Has he made a mockery of Wagner? What would Wagner think? Does that matter?
Which returns us to the ongoing question about how much license a director has and/or should use. How much do they owe the text of the libretti or the music? I know what I believe for myself, but who am I to say about others. Perhaps they are the one pushing us into the future. And frankly, folks can get up in arms about it, but, the people who hired him, knew exactly what they were doing. They got what they wanted.
And what was that?
First off, to direct at Bayreuth is an honor. The festival theater was built FOR The Ring Cycle, under the genius of Wagner himself, who is credited with pushing along and defining the role of the director in the modern theater.
And Frank Castorf is no unknown. He's run the Volksbrune theater in Berlin since 1992 and is known for his avante-guarde work. (I saw his Medea when I was in Berlin in 2009, the theater was being renovated so it was staged on the front steps of the theater: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESGluUOXDlc)
So when a director known for their desecration of text and insane directorial concepts is hired to direct THE RING CYCLE what do you expect? Sure, parts of it sound horrible to me. And sure, the audience booed. And there he stood, pointing at them. He wanted to make them angry. It's what he does!
So has he gone too far? Has he made a mockery of Wagner? What would Wagner think? Does that matter?
Which returns us to the ongoing question about how much license a director has and/or should use. How much do they owe the text of the libretti or the music? I know what I believe for myself, but who am I to say about others. Perhaps they are the one pushing us into the future. And frankly, folks can get up in arms about it, but, the people who hired him, knew exactly what they were doing. They got what they wanted.
And what was that?
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