CHAPTER XXVIIIPrivate Performances at the Hof Theater at MunichThe Bavarians were in general inclined to forgive their King’s peculiarities. A single weakness, however, they found it difficult to condone: they did not like his habit of commanding private performances at the theatre, of which he was the only witness.Although Ludwig covered all the expenses, his private performances at the Hof Theater became so unpopular that his Ministers felt themselves constrained to make a protest against them. The blame for this taste was laid upon Wagner, the charge being based on the fact that the poet-musician had arranged (1865) a concert in the Hof Theater at which the King had been the sole audience. More probable is it, however, that his pleasure in them was awakened little by little, as he was in the habit of driving in from his castles in the mountain districts to be present at the various dress rehearsals.From time to time he would cause translations or adaptations of French plays from Louis XIV.’s time to be made and played for him alone. Later he transferred his attentionto Louis XV.’s time. In his latter years he caused several historical pieces to be produced, of which the subjects were taken from the legends relating to Hohenschwangau. The first private performance took place in 1871, the last towards the end of 1885. In the course of these fourteen seasons he was present at two hundred and ten performances, of which forty-five were operas.1Until and including 1878 there were never given more than twelve private performances in each season. In 1879 the number rose to twenty, and in 1883 to twenty-five performances. Everything that was played for the King alone was artistically perfect.The actress Charlotte Wolther, who played in the lastNarciszperformance of 1885, has written her impressions of that evening:“His Majesty had ordered that the representation should begin at twelve o’clock at night, she tells us. All that was to be seen through the peephole was the brightly lighted proscenium. Absolutesilence reigned; even the workmen wore felt slippers. At the stroke of twelve a bell was rung; the King was leaving the Palace. He passed along the corridor to his great box. A new ringing of the bell announced that he had entered it, and immediately the curtain rose! The singer became the victim of a nervous trembling, and required all her presence of mind to perform her part before a single witness, at such a strange time, and in such romantic stillness....”Many stories of doubtful veracity were circulated with regard to these theatre evenings. French, Russian, and American journalists depicted them in fantastic colours. The American humorist Mark Twain wrote amusingly of them; and his accounts won general credence on both sides of the Atlantic! “The opera concluded, and the artists having washed the paint off their faces, they are frequently ordered to re-dress, and singers and orchestra have to go through the opera a second time for the King,” he writes in one of his books. “There is in the great Hof Theater an apparatus which, in case of fire, can put the whole stage under water. A violent storm was represented at oneof these private performances. The theatre tempest howled, the thunder rolled. In a loud voice Ludwig shouted from his box: ‘Good, very good! But I want real rain. Let the water flow!’ The scene-shifter ventured to demur, representing that the decorations, no less than the silk and velvet curtains, would be destroyed. ‘Never mind,’ said the King; ‘do as I bid you!’ The water poured out over the stage, over the artificial flowers and houses. The singers were drenched; they put a bold face on it, and sang away bravely. The King applauded, and shouted ‘Bravo! More thunder, more lighting!’ he ordered. ‘Bad luck to him who dares to leave the stage!’”Needless to say, Mark Twain’s story was entirely the creation of his own brain; Ludwig laughed heartily when the description was read aloud to him. And yet the citizens of Munich were no less credulous on this point than the American public. They thought, among other things, that the King wrote his own plays; and they declared that his private performances raised the taxation of the country.1Among other pieces which were performed privately in 1872 were:Comtesse du Barry,Le Comte de Saint Germain,Un Ministre sous Louis XV.From 1872–77 not a single opera was performed privately; but in 1878 he heard Verdi’sAïda, with Wagner’sSiegfrid-idylas the introduction. In 1879 he causedDer Ring des Niebelungento be performed four times in succession. In 1880 he heard Wagner’sTannhäuser,Lohengrin, and Verdi’sAïda. In 1881 Gluck’sIphegenie auf Tauris, Wagner’sTristan und Isolde, and Weber’sOberon. In 1882 Gluck’sArmida, Wagner’sTannhäuser,Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg,Lohengrin, and Meyerbeer’sHuguenots. In 1883Der Ring des Niebelungen,Der Fliegende Holländer. In 1884Tristan und Isolde, and six timesParsifal. Besides this were given at his commandDie Stumme von Portici, by Auber, and again Gluck’sArmida. In 1885, in the month of April, he heardParsifalthree times. Of plays he saw this year Schiller’sWilhelm Tell, Sardou’sTheodora, Brachvogel’sNarcisz, and several pieces by Carl von Heigel, a gifted Bavarian writer who for a number of years wrote and adapted dramatic works for the King’s private performances.↑
CHAPTER XXVIIIPrivate Performances at the Hof Theater at MunichThe Bavarians were in general inclined to forgive their King’s peculiarities. A single weakness, however, they found it difficult to condone: they did not like his habit of commanding private performances at the theatre, of which he was the only witness.Although Ludwig covered all the expenses, his private performances at the Hof Theater became so unpopular that his Ministers felt themselves constrained to make a protest against them. The blame for this taste was laid upon Wagner, the charge being based on the fact that the poet-musician had arranged (1865) a concert in the Hof Theater at which the King had been the sole audience. More probable is it, however, that his pleasure in them was awakened little by little, as he was in the habit of driving in from his castles in the mountain districts to be present at the various dress rehearsals.From time to time he would cause translations or adaptations of French plays from Louis XIV.’s time to be made and played for him alone. Later he transferred his attentionto Louis XV.’s time. In his latter years he caused several historical pieces to be produced, of which the subjects were taken from the legends relating to Hohenschwangau. The first private performance took place in 1871, the last towards the end of 1885. In the course of these fourteen seasons he was present at two hundred and ten performances, of which forty-five were operas.1Until and including 1878 there were never given more than twelve private performances in each season. In 1879 the number rose to twenty, and in 1883 to twenty-five performances. Everything that was played for the King alone was artistically perfect.The actress Charlotte Wolther, who played in the lastNarciszperformance of 1885, has written her impressions of that evening:“His Majesty had ordered that the representation should begin at twelve o’clock at night, she tells us. All that was to be seen through the peephole was the brightly lighted proscenium. Absolutesilence reigned; even the workmen wore felt slippers. At the stroke of twelve a bell was rung; the King was leaving the Palace. He passed along the corridor to his great box. A new ringing of the bell announced that he had entered it, and immediately the curtain rose! The singer became the victim of a nervous trembling, and required all her presence of mind to perform her part before a single witness, at such a strange time, and in such romantic stillness....”Many stories of doubtful veracity were circulated with regard to these theatre evenings. French, Russian, and American journalists depicted them in fantastic colours. The American humorist Mark Twain wrote amusingly of them; and his accounts won general credence on both sides of the Atlantic! “The opera concluded, and the artists having washed the paint off their faces, they are frequently ordered to re-dress, and singers and orchestra have to go through the opera a second time for the King,” he writes in one of his books. “There is in the great Hof Theater an apparatus which, in case of fire, can put the whole stage under water. A violent storm was represented at oneof these private performances. The theatre tempest howled, the thunder rolled. In a loud voice Ludwig shouted from his box: ‘Good, very good! But I want real rain. Let the water flow!’ The scene-shifter ventured to demur, representing that the decorations, no less than the silk and velvet curtains, would be destroyed. ‘Never mind,’ said the King; ‘do as I bid you!’ The water poured out over the stage, over the artificial flowers and houses. The singers were drenched; they put a bold face on it, and sang away bravely. The King applauded, and shouted ‘Bravo! More thunder, more lighting!’ he ordered. ‘Bad luck to him who dares to leave the stage!’”Needless to say, Mark Twain’s story was entirely the creation of his own brain; Ludwig laughed heartily when the description was read aloud to him. And yet the citizens of Munich were no less credulous on this point than the American public. They thought, among other things, that the King wrote his own plays; and they declared that his private performances raised the taxation of the country.1Among other pieces which were performed privately in 1872 were:Comtesse du Barry,Le Comte de Saint Germain,Un Ministre sous Louis XV.From 1872–77 not a single opera was performed privately; but in 1878 he heard Verdi’sAïda, with Wagner’sSiegfrid-idylas the introduction. In 1879 he causedDer Ring des Niebelungento be performed four times in succession. In 1880 he heard Wagner’sTannhäuser,Lohengrin, and Verdi’sAïda. In 1881 Gluck’sIphegenie auf Tauris, Wagner’sTristan und Isolde, and Weber’sOberon. In 1882 Gluck’sArmida, Wagner’sTannhäuser,Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg,Lohengrin, and Meyerbeer’sHuguenots. In 1883Der Ring des Niebelungen,Der Fliegende Holländer. In 1884Tristan und Isolde, and six timesParsifal. Besides this were given at his commandDie Stumme von Portici, by Auber, and again Gluck’sArmida. In 1885, in the month of April, he heardParsifalthree times. Of plays he saw this year Schiller’sWilhelm Tell, Sardou’sTheodora, Brachvogel’sNarcisz, and several pieces by Carl von Heigel, a gifted Bavarian writer who for a number of years wrote and adapted dramatic works for the King’s private performances.↑
CHAPTER XXVIIIPrivate Performances at the Hof Theater at Munich
The Bavarians were in general inclined to forgive their King’s peculiarities. A single weakness, however, they found it difficult to condone: they did not like his habit of commanding private performances at the theatre, of which he was the only witness.Although Ludwig covered all the expenses, his private performances at the Hof Theater became so unpopular that his Ministers felt themselves constrained to make a protest against them. The blame for this taste was laid upon Wagner, the charge being based on the fact that the poet-musician had arranged (1865) a concert in the Hof Theater at which the King had been the sole audience. More probable is it, however, that his pleasure in them was awakened little by little, as he was in the habit of driving in from his castles in the mountain districts to be present at the various dress rehearsals.From time to time he would cause translations or adaptations of French plays from Louis XIV.’s time to be made and played for him alone. Later he transferred his attentionto Louis XV.’s time. In his latter years he caused several historical pieces to be produced, of which the subjects were taken from the legends relating to Hohenschwangau. The first private performance took place in 1871, the last towards the end of 1885. In the course of these fourteen seasons he was present at two hundred and ten performances, of which forty-five were operas.1Until and including 1878 there were never given more than twelve private performances in each season. In 1879 the number rose to twenty, and in 1883 to twenty-five performances. Everything that was played for the King alone was artistically perfect.The actress Charlotte Wolther, who played in the lastNarciszperformance of 1885, has written her impressions of that evening:“His Majesty had ordered that the representation should begin at twelve o’clock at night, she tells us. All that was to be seen through the peephole was the brightly lighted proscenium. Absolutesilence reigned; even the workmen wore felt slippers. At the stroke of twelve a bell was rung; the King was leaving the Palace. He passed along the corridor to his great box. A new ringing of the bell announced that he had entered it, and immediately the curtain rose! The singer became the victim of a nervous trembling, and required all her presence of mind to perform her part before a single witness, at such a strange time, and in such romantic stillness....”Many stories of doubtful veracity were circulated with regard to these theatre evenings. French, Russian, and American journalists depicted them in fantastic colours. The American humorist Mark Twain wrote amusingly of them; and his accounts won general credence on both sides of the Atlantic! “The opera concluded, and the artists having washed the paint off their faces, they are frequently ordered to re-dress, and singers and orchestra have to go through the opera a second time for the King,” he writes in one of his books. “There is in the great Hof Theater an apparatus which, in case of fire, can put the whole stage under water. A violent storm was represented at oneof these private performances. The theatre tempest howled, the thunder rolled. In a loud voice Ludwig shouted from his box: ‘Good, very good! But I want real rain. Let the water flow!’ The scene-shifter ventured to demur, representing that the decorations, no less than the silk and velvet curtains, would be destroyed. ‘Never mind,’ said the King; ‘do as I bid you!’ The water poured out over the stage, over the artificial flowers and houses. The singers were drenched; they put a bold face on it, and sang away bravely. The King applauded, and shouted ‘Bravo! More thunder, more lighting!’ he ordered. ‘Bad luck to him who dares to leave the stage!’”Needless to say, Mark Twain’s story was entirely the creation of his own brain; Ludwig laughed heartily when the description was read aloud to him. And yet the citizens of Munich were no less credulous on this point than the American public. They thought, among other things, that the King wrote his own plays; and they declared that his private performances raised the taxation of the country.
The Bavarians were in general inclined to forgive their King’s peculiarities. A single weakness, however, they found it difficult to condone: they did not like his habit of commanding private performances at the theatre, of which he was the only witness.
Although Ludwig covered all the expenses, his private performances at the Hof Theater became so unpopular that his Ministers felt themselves constrained to make a protest against them. The blame for this taste was laid upon Wagner, the charge being based on the fact that the poet-musician had arranged (1865) a concert in the Hof Theater at which the King had been the sole audience. More probable is it, however, that his pleasure in them was awakened little by little, as he was in the habit of driving in from his castles in the mountain districts to be present at the various dress rehearsals.
From time to time he would cause translations or adaptations of French plays from Louis XIV.’s time to be made and played for him alone. Later he transferred his attentionto Louis XV.’s time. In his latter years he caused several historical pieces to be produced, of which the subjects were taken from the legends relating to Hohenschwangau. The first private performance took place in 1871, the last towards the end of 1885. In the course of these fourteen seasons he was present at two hundred and ten performances, of which forty-five were operas.1Until and including 1878 there were never given more than twelve private performances in each season. In 1879 the number rose to twenty, and in 1883 to twenty-five performances. Everything that was played for the King alone was artistically perfect.
The actress Charlotte Wolther, who played in the lastNarciszperformance of 1885, has written her impressions of that evening:
“His Majesty had ordered that the representation should begin at twelve o’clock at night, she tells us. All that was to be seen through the peephole was the brightly lighted proscenium. Absolutesilence reigned; even the workmen wore felt slippers. At the stroke of twelve a bell was rung; the King was leaving the Palace. He passed along the corridor to his great box. A new ringing of the bell announced that he had entered it, and immediately the curtain rose! The singer became the victim of a nervous trembling, and required all her presence of mind to perform her part before a single witness, at such a strange time, and in such romantic stillness....”
Many stories of doubtful veracity were circulated with regard to these theatre evenings. French, Russian, and American journalists depicted them in fantastic colours. The American humorist Mark Twain wrote amusingly of them; and his accounts won general credence on both sides of the Atlantic! “The opera concluded, and the artists having washed the paint off their faces, they are frequently ordered to re-dress, and singers and orchestra have to go through the opera a second time for the King,” he writes in one of his books. “There is in the great Hof Theater an apparatus which, in case of fire, can put the whole stage under water. A violent storm was represented at oneof these private performances. The theatre tempest howled, the thunder rolled. In a loud voice Ludwig shouted from his box: ‘Good, very good! But I want real rain. Let the water flow!’ The scene-shifter ventured to demur, representing that the decorations, no less than the silk and velvet curtains, would be destroyed. ‘Never mind,’ said the King; ‘do as I bid you!’ The water poured out over the stage, over the artificial flowers and houses. The singers were drenched; they put a bold face on it, and sang away bravely. The King applauded, and shouted ‘Bravo! More thunder, more lighting!’ he ordered. ‘Bad luck to him who dares to leave the stage!’”
Needless to say, Mark Twain’s story was entirely the creation of his own brain; Ludwig laughed heartily when the description was read aloud to him. And yet the citizens of Munich were no less credulous on this point than the American public. They thought, among other things, that the King wrote his own plays; and they declared that his private performances raised the taxation of the country.
1Among other pieces which were performed privately in 1872 were:Comtesse du Barry,Le Comte de Saint Germain,Un Ministre sous Louis XV.From 1872–77 not a single opera was performed privately; but in 1878 he heard Verdi’sAïda, with Wagner’sSiegfrid-idylas the introduction. In 1879 he causedDer Ring des Niebelungento be performed four times in succession. In 1880 he heard Wagner’sTannhäuser,Lohengrin, and Verdi’sAïda. In 1881 Gluck’sIphegenie auf Tauris, Wagner’sTristan und Isolde, and Weber’sOberon. In 1882 Gluck’sArmida, Wagner’sTannhäuser,Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg,Lohengrin, and Meyerbeer’sHuguenots. In 1883Der Ring des Niebelungen,Der Fliegende Holländer. In 1884Tristan und Isolde, and six timesParsifal. Besides this were given at his commandDie Stumme von Portici, by Auber, and again Gluck’sArmida. In 1885, in the month of April, he heardParsifalthree times. Of plays he saw this year Schiller’sWilhelm Tell, Sardou’sTheodora, Brachvogel’sNarcisz, and several pieces by Carl von Heigel, a gifted Bavarian writer who for a number of years wrote and adapted dramatic works for the King’s private performances.↑
1Among other pieces which were performed privately in 1872 were:Comtesse du Barry,Le Comte de Saint Germain,Un Ministre sous Louis XV.
From 1872–77 not a single opera was performed privately; but in 1878 he heard Verdi’sAïda, with Wagner’sSiegfrid-idylas the introduction. In 1879 he causedDer Ring des Niebelungento be performed four times in succession. In 1880 he heard Wagner’sTannhäuser,Lohengrin, and Verdi’sAïda. In 1881 Gluck’sIphegenie auf Tauris, Wagner’sTristan und Isolde, and Weber’sOberon. In 1882 Gluck’sArmida, Wagner’sTannhäuser,Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg,Lohengrin, and Meyerbeer’sHuguenots. In 1883Der Ring des Niebelungen,Der Fliegende Holländer. In 1884Tristan und Isolde, and six timesParsifal. Besides this were given at his commandDie Stumme von Portici, by Auber, and again Gluck’sArmida. In 1885, in the month of April, he heardParsifalthree times. Of plays he saw this year Schiller’sWilhelm Tell, Sardou’sTheodora, Brachvogel’sNarcisz, and several pieces by Carl von Heigel, a gifted Bavarian writer who for a number of years wrote and adapted dramatic works for the King’s private performances.↑