The independent-reporter., 1910-12-08
THE PASSION PLAY.
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the fall Of the year. one of the vii
layers who had been working all sum-
mer in neighboring village on the
other side of the mountain, decided
that he must see his family. He got
by the lines of quarantine only to die
two days later in his home-a victim
of the dreaded plague which he had
brought from over the mountains.
The disease spread fiercely among
the villagers, many dying each day,
until the very extinction of the vii
lage was threatened. At last, in
their sore distress, these simple peo-
pie turned to the God they had al
ways regarded as all powerful and
the author of all good and asked him
to turn away their affiiction. In their
appeal to the Almighty father, they
made sacred VOW that should God
spare them and lift the curse that
was upon them in recognition of his
Divine Compassion, they would per-
form once every ten years, as mem
orial, the tragedy of the Passion of
his Son. The record states that from
that hour not a person died though
several had signs of the plague upon
them. Beginning In the year 1884,
the play was performed every ten
years up to 1874 when it was put
mencing with 1880. From that time
on, the Passion Play has been given
every ten years with but one omis-
against all religious plays in Ger
many.
To Alois Daisenberger, priest and
pastor of the village of Oberammer-
gau, we owe the Passion play as we
see it today. Not until 1900 was it
published but in its present form it
has been used since it was prepared
by him in 1850. For two years he
labored, and today sixty years after
his labor was completed and years
after he had been tenderly given back
to Mother earth, people from all parts
of the world are being made better
by his labor of love. A monument
indeed worthy of such a man!
1t was not my good fortune to re-
main in the little village of Oberam
mergau long enough to become per-
sonally acquainted with any of the
people who take part in the play
unless l except the sweet little daugh-
ter of the house where we stayed and
where we had our breakfasts. She
waited on us in the morning with
cheerful smile in spite of the fact that
she had a badly swollen and painful
tooth. Later, we saw her in one of
the tableaux as one of the brides
maids, with a rapt expression on her
round face and minus the bandage
which had helped ease the tooth in
the morning. 1t Is from Mrs. Rich
ards, wife of an American artist who
has made herself one of the people
of Oberammergau from her life and
sympathy with them and who went
with us on the train back to Munich,
that | shall quote.
Perhaps a few words about the
Christus would not be amiss as he,
of course, is the central figure in the
play and the one upon whom all eyes
are turned from his triumphal entry
into Jerusalem until his unspeakably
sad and realistic death on the cross.
He is a man of more than average
heighth, with the same light brown hair
and beard and blue eyes that Christ
is believed to have had and as he is
so often painted. His face Is un-
speakably sad during most of the
play. Anton Lang, the Christus in
1910 as we'll as 1900 is man now
thirty-five years of age. He was
twenty-five when first he was Chris
tus in 1900. Up to that time, he had
never had a role of Importance and
to follow In the footsteps of Joseph
Mayer, who as an actor could hardly
have a rival, was no small or mean
task. He had no other recommends
ton than his modest, pleasing appear
ance and spotiess character. With
what success lie filled his role In
1900 has borne testimony and that he
should again be reelected in 1910
was no surprise to himself or the
community. Since his Christus in
1900, he has married and his pretty
dark-eyed wife was the daughter of
the village blacksmith and the lead
ing soprano In the chorus. They
have three pretty children and upon
their marriage were the recipients of
innumerable congratulatory letters,
kilograms and -remembrances, among
them one from the Dowager Queen
Margarita of Italy. Since 1900, the
Christus has several times left his
native village Immediately after the
play in 1900, he made a journey to
Rome with four other performers OF
the Passion Play. where he was kind
ly received by Pope Leo XIII who
sent him away with blessings and later
bestowed upon him the order of Pro
Ecclesia ct Pontifce. That the Chris
tus feels his part and is not simply
a wonderful actor, is shown by con-
versation overheard by one Of our
party in the little shop of Anton Lang.
1t was after the close of the play. for
during the two hours between the
morning and afternoon performance
the Christus never leaves the build