Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-05-09
193OPASS|ON PLAY
OPENS IN ICY RAIN
5000 Invited Guests Gather
at 0berammergau for
First Performance.
CONTINUED From First Page.)

Continued From First Page)
pottery. and owns representatives of
nearly all arts.
The Oberammergau Passion Play"
stands or falls as a local unprofessional
performance - unprofeSsional despite
charges OF commercialism that are fire.
quently made by ill-willed persons.
1t Is true, thanks to the fame Of the
play, that this town is better known,
cleaner and richer than other Bavarian
villages. 1t is true that tickets can be
purchased only with lodgings and that
all the villagers take dodgers at rather
high prices. But the investment for
this years season in better roads and q
new theater seating 5000 will consume
their profits for many years, and each
actor only takes from the common pool
OF the seasons income what he can
prove he would have earned In a SINH
lar period at his regular occupation.
Quality Bellies Charge.
The charge of commercialism is belied
by many things, but chiefly by the
quality OF the play. No professionals
could give a comparable performance,
simply because without the combination
OF vital faith and inherited tradition,
the Christian drama-greatest In the
World-cannot be vitalized.
All modern so-called obstacles to such
performance mean nothing here I'm
agine giant cast staging a vast per-
iormance consisting of 16 acts, lasting
eight hours and half played under a
pouring rain with an icy mountain wind
sweeping the theater and dropping rags
OF snow on the nearby hills, yet filling
the stage with such power of spirit that
the performance never for once falters.
and holding spellbound for the same
hot d
almost the same rigors of weather.
This Is the miracle of Oberammergau.
why 1t is expected to draw a record
number OF 100000 visitors from the en-
tire world to this town this Summer.
From the point of view of compara-
tive drama, the play has many defects.
Each of the 16 acts is preceded by a
spoken prelude and chorale which not
even the magnetism of old Anton
Lang-who three times played the role
OF Jesus in former days-could save
from dizziness.
The text is not good-it lacks the
original medieval simplicity, and is
heavily padded, often trite. reaching
verbal heights only where it incorpo-
rates scriptural quotations. The music
reflects both operate and religious
music OF the early nineteenth century
TO modern ears 1t is inSipid without
being simple.
Living Pictures Of High Art.
Each act is preceded by living pic
ture," giving an Old Testament scene
parallel in feeling to the phase in the
development which is about to be in
terpreted in drama on the stage. yet
here the miracle began, for these pic
lures, which so easily could have drib-
bled into sentimentality, were combined
with such high artistry and such superb
compositions-for which the old masters
were often q source of inspiration-tha
one forgot the old-fashioned realism of
the scenery and enjoyed them like COL
ored prints In old Bibles.
Certain scenes, like the Last Sup
per-" like the semi-riot before PLATE.
where the priest-maddened Jews de-
manded that Jesus be crucified instead
of Barabbas, and like the actual death
on the cross, are both religiously and
dramatically Incompatible. Max Rein
hardt himself never grouped and han
died masses-350 persons on the stage
better than these peasant directors
Dramatic interest was slow In rising
AloiS Lang, the wood carver, was OBJ
viouSly nervous in his firt appearance
as Jesus, which Is the highest honor
Oberammergau can imagine for any
one, and his entrance into Jerusalem
on the ass was not convincing. But he
found himself in the last supper" and
from there his tall slip of a figure,
which overtopped the other actors by
nearly a head, grew ever more mag
netic, until. in the death on the cross.
it became matter of historical sig
nificance.
Magnificent was the acting Of Guido
Mayr as Judas. and of Hugo Rutz as
High Priest Caiaphas. Hansi Preisin-
ger. as Mary Magdalen, was marvel
of beauty, and Ami Ruiz, as Mary,
embodied the strange old tradition
whereby Mary, being SinleSS, never ages
and can be depicted as younger than |
her Divine Son.
Bavarian Dignitaries Attend.
The audience was finely selected. All !
the Bavarian dignitaries, including 10 |
cabinet ministers and important people
like the former Kaiser's son. Prince |
August wilhelm; DR.. Hugo Eckener, |
Geheimrat Hermann Buecher. head of |
the Allgemeine Elektrizitaets Gesell- |
schaft and many foreign and German |
journalists. while at the extreme rear |
of the theater, so yards from the stage,
the Papal nuncio to Bavaria, Mgr. AL |
berto Vassallo di Tore Grossa. was q
brilliant splash of purple against the
mass of spectators in hats and rain
coats. The nuncio made hit with |
pretty blonde HanSi PreiSinger by de-
clarinE that she was too beautiful TO
play as a sinner like Magdalen.
1t will be remembered that the entire
town for months does nothing but pre-
pare for the passion play. At the sta
ton your bags are carried and your
trunks tossed about by long-haired
youths who on the following day you
recognize on the stage as disciples OF
Jesus. Men grow stately boards and
women long hair which they wear down
their backs In loose style.
During the single lunch period which
divides the eight-hour performance, you
can visit this and that house and watch
Judas Iscariot absorbing white saul
putting dietetics with her mother.
Every house takes dodgers and natural