Oberammergau Passionsspiele: Exploring a Sacred Theatre (Part 10)
EPILOGUE
“For tradition to survive, it must stay true to its purpose but also evolve to meet the needs of the people and the time”,
Oberammergau Passionsspiele: Exploring a Sacred Theatre (Part 9)
LESSONS & REFLECTIONS
Several hundred years ago, the Passionsspiele was performed by Catholic farmers isolated in the mountainside. Passion plays were the few opportunities for local people to engage with their spiritual and religious stories in their own voices, their own their own languages, and their own words, rather than the Latin of the pulpit. For those of the Christian faiths, this interaction remains true today.
Oberammergau Passionsspiele: Exploring a Sacred Theatre (Part 8)
OBSERVING REHEARSALS – DAY 3 : HUMAN STORIES
There is something very German in the aesthetic. Despite the pageantry, ritual, and scale of this project, this is a story about human beings. Human beings are imperfect, messy, and clumsy.
Oberammergau Passionsspiele: Exploring a Sacred Theatre (Part 7)
OBSERVING REHEARSALS – DAY 2: FACING THE PAST
With the challenging history of passion plays and the contemporary history of the region, Oberammergau doesn’t hide from its past. Nor does it hide from its responsibilities.
Oberammergau Passionsspiele: Exploring a Sacred Theatre (Part 6)
OBSERVING REHEARSALS DAY 2 : EVOLVING TO MEET THE TIMES
Widely considered the best part, this year Judas is played this year by 22-year-old actor Cengiz Görür.
Oberammergau Passionsspiele: Exploring a Sacred Theatre (Part 5)
OBSERVING REHEARSALS DAY 2 : MUSIC AND TABLEAUX VIVANT
To maintain the unique traditional skill sets needed for the music, the village has multiple choirs and orchestras operating throughout the 10 year gaps between productions.