Festspielhaus [Bayreuth]
Bayreuth Festspielhaus
Festivalové divadlo
Festspielhaus di Bayreuth
Festspielhaus de Bayreuth
Theatre building in Bayreuth, Germany
operagebouw in Duitsland
Festspielhaus
ON THE HISTORY OF ORIGINS OF THE BAYREUTH FESTIVAL Bayreuth was not the first choice. When Richard Wagner roughly sketched his Festival idea in 1850, his thoughts circled around Zurich or Weimar, and later around Munich. Twenty years passed until, in terms of modern jargon, he “googled” the name of the Frankish gem; Hans Richter had drawn him to the vacant Margravial Opera House of the city of Bayreuth. A year later, the first visit of the town followed, the house proved to be unsuitable for the purpose of the Ring performance, but the city pleased the composer. On 22 May 1872, the foundation was laid, but the construction came to a hold shortly afterwards: the attempt to erect the present-day Festival Hall as a “crowdfunding project” failed because of financial issues. It was only when King Ludwig II provided the necessary funds by means of credit that the construction continued. On 13 August 1876, the first Bayreuth Festival began.
Descriptive text, I. pp. 29, * 30; Block plan, I. p. 29 ; General view, I. p. 29 ; Site plan, I. p. 30 ; View of auditorium, I. p. 30 ; Front elevation, I. PI. 50 ; Longitudinal section, I. PI. 50; Plan, ground level, I. PI. 51; Area, I. PI. 52 ; Site, III. p. 14 ; Plan and section of orchestra, III. pp. 64, 65 ; Sketch plan, IN. p. 120; Skeleton plan of audi­torium, 111. PI. opp. p. 62 ; Skeleton section of auditorium, 111. PI. opp. p. 62 ; Cost and dimensions, 111. p. 16.
Built 1872-1876 by Otto Brückwald for Richard Wagner. Opened 13 Aug 1876 with Richard Wagner's Rheingold. 1881-1882 extension by the Königsbau, a staircase pavilion with a closed royal box. Renovated 1925-1925, 1931, 1933, 1958-1959 and 1962-1973. Originally 1645 seats, today 1925 seats. - Throughout its history, the theatre has only be used for performances of Richard Wagner's operas during the Festspiele (with the exception of some performances of Beethoven's 9th symphony, and some entertainment performances after World War II). Its unique covered pit that hides the orchestra completely from the audience results in an especially well-balanced acoustic mixture of voices and orchestra in the auditorium. see also Postcards of Bayreuth Stage Sets World premieres: Richard Wagner: Siegfried (16 Aug 1876) Richard Wagner: Götterdämmerung (17 Aug 1876) Richard Wagner: Parsifal (26 July 1882)
The Festspielhaus Bayreuth in Germany was built by architect Otto Brückwald to the designs of Richard Wagner, to stage his operas. The steeply rising amphitheatre seating, recessed orchestra pit and darkened auditorium were techniques to create an individual, transcendent experience for the spectator.
3D model of the audience side