Postponed two years ago because of Corona, Oberammergau is now catching up on its Passion Play. War, flight, poverty and commitment to the weak – the story of Jesus of Nazareth is highly topical.
Choir, orchestra, hundreds of people on stage, plus horses, sheep and camels: the people of Oberammergau bring the passion play to the stage as a monumental spectacle, following their centuries-old vow to plague.
The premiere is on Saturday – finally. The passion should have existed as early as 2020, when Corona intervened. Game director Christian Stückl postponed by two years.
Around 2100 locals are involved
Since then the world has changed. Biblical themes have become explosive with force. Escape and expulsion, war and poverty: Jesus should appear energetic and strong. Stückl doesn’t need a gentle Christ at this time. “Jesus was always at the frontiers of society. He is with the poor, with the refugees.” But also: “He is sometimes desperate in this world.”
There is rehearsal every day. Finally, the sewing machines rattled again in the tailoring shop because 30 garments were missing. After the Corona break, the seamstresses had to adjust some of the clothes. Young people in particular had partly outgrown it.
Around 75 percent of the tickets for the 100 performances up until October 2 have been sold, and some overseas had returned their tickets because of the war in Ukraine. “Today we don’t really know how many people will visit us this year, we don’t know if the terrible war in Ukraine will spread, we don’t know what Corona is doing, if there will be another wave, but we have endless desire to bring our Passion Play to the stage and are highly motivated,” says Stückl.
Around 2100 locals, more than a third of the 5200 inhabitants, take part in the performance. About 300 who wanted to be there in 2020 canceled. Not everyone can dig half a year free. The performance is a full day, five hours plus a three-hour intermission.
The Passion Play will open on Saturday with an ecumenical service by Munich Archbishop Cardinal Reinhard Marx and the Evangelical Bishop Heinrich Bedford-Strohm.
In a climbing harness on a wooden cross
“Everything is practically ready,” says Frederik Mayet, spokesman for the Passion, who is giving Jesus for the second time. The lot has decided that he – also for the second time – plays the premiere. All 20 main roles are cast twice. Mayet and his Jesus colleague Rochus Rückel have already survived several trial crucifixions. Wearing a climbing harness, they hang from the wooden cross, their feet on small boards.
Stückl wants to put the work of Jesus in the foreground more than before. “We used to tell the story of the passion of Jesus. But the story is very important. What did he want in his life? And: How does this Jesus fit into our time?”
The 60-year-old, who is staging the passion for the fourth time, is not primarily concerned with specific events such as the war in Ukraine, climate change or the Corona crisis. “We’re constantly at war,” he said. The world has been in motion for years.
Costume and stage designer Stefan Hageneier has converted the stage into an extensive temple complex. This political and religious center of Jerusalem forms the setting throughout the play. It begins with key scenes from the Old and New Testaments: the expulsion from paradise, then Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem.
Jesus rides a real donkey
The music has also been redesigned under the direction of Markus Zwink. The orchestra and choir – together around 120 people – are intended to provide a smooth transition between the scenes from the life of Jesus and the living images as flashbacks to the Old Testament.
The link to the origin of the Passion is also drawn: the choir members wear clothes that could date from 1634. Back then, the people of Oberammergau, stricken by the plague, had vowed to perform the Passion every ten years.
Stückl turned the Bible into a play and modernized amateur drama. He has given more weight to female roles and rid the play of Christian anti-Judaisms. He got awards for that. He makes it clear: Jesus was a Jew, it’s about an inner-Jewish conflict – it wasn’t “the” Jews who let Jesus be nailed to the cross
Despite all the renewal: a lot remains traditional. The costumes are historically based, Jesus rides on a real donkey named Aramis, flowing hair and beards characterize the image in town. All players except for angels and Romans had to let their hair grow – although it is not proven whether long hair and beards were really fashionable 2000 years ago. However, because of Corona, Stückl had relaxed the ban on shaving – the FFP2 mask does not fit so well with a beard.
Two main roles cast by Muslims
Concerns that the Passion Play could still be affected by Corona are fading. He is glad that there are no restrictions for the audience, says Stückl. If both Jesus performers or both Mary performers fall ill, a performance will have to be cancelled, says Stückl. He could step in for some roles – as he sometimes does as director at the Munich Volkstheater. But: “I will not play Mary, the angel, John or even Jesus.”
For the first time, two Muslims from Oberammergau take on the leading roles. For the theater man Stückl counts – as he always emphasized – not the religion, but the acting talent.
Several hundred children play along – and many seniors in their 80s, including Stückl’s father, who plays Annas the high priest. The oldest player is approaching 100 – and some have participated in ten passions, from childhood to old age. The passion: This is a passion for many people from Oberammergau.
The 42nd Passion Play will be performed from May 14th to October 2nd, 2022.