Intermezzo

Bayreuth here I come

It took 90 minutes and a shedload of glitches to get there, but I finally managed to get my mitts on tickets for next year's Bayreuth Festival.

Today's online lottery, as predicted, was heavily over-subscribed. Even though the financial side was all handled by Paypal, the Bayreuth booking system collapsed. Some customers saw the addresses and personal details of others pop up in their own orders. Many who managed to select tickets initially then saw some or all of them disappear. I started off with a whole Ring cycle in my basket but lost the Götterdämmerung (anyone with a spare feel free to email). Still, three is better than none.

Hotel rooms are in short supply during the Festival and Booking.com was doing a brisk trade last time I looked - if you were lucky enough to get tickets, now is the time to book.

Too old for Bayreuth

The Bayreuth Festival has just got rid of twenty over-65s.

The singers, musicians and technicians who lost their jobs were employed under annual contracts, which included an age limit. However it hadn't been enforced until now.  An increase in the amount of sick leave taken by older technicians prompted the decision, which was taken with the agreement of workers' representatives.

The affected workers were only informed three days before the end of the current season. That's because festival management didn't want to make them "sad", according to general manager Heinz-Dieter Sense (age not disclosed, but over 70). 

Meanwhile, it appears increasingly likely that Katharina Wagner and Eva Wagner-Pasquier (68) will have their current contract extended when it expires in 2015.

Bayreuth builders in till 2021

To add to the Bayreuth Festival's catalogue of woes, it now seems likely that refurbishment of the Bayreuth Festspielhaus will not be completed until 2021. Building works will be interrupted each summer in order to stage the festival.

The first step has been taken with the signing of a financing agreement for 30 million euros, most of which will come from public funds. The next stage is to find an architect, after which more detailed costings and schedules can be produced.

Bayreuth needs the Wagner gene

The Bayreuth Festival should remain in the hands of the Wagner family says the Bavarian Arts Minister, Wolfgang Heubisch. The State of Bavaria is one of the joint owners of the Bayreuth Festival, along with the federal government, the city of Bayreuth and the Friends.   Collectively they are responsible for deciding whether the contract of the Wagner sisters should be renewed when it expires in 2015.

 "I cannot imagine a festival management without the Wagner family," said Heubisch. "The name 'Richard-Wagner-Festspiele' says it all. When so many family members are  involved in the arts sector, the Wagner gene should be retained. "

It is expected that a decision about the future leadership will be made soon. Heubisch's advocacy gives the strongest hint to date about which way the decision is likely to go.

Bayreuth 2014 - tickets available online

From the Bayreuth Festival website:

Here you have the opportunity to directly purchase tickets for eleven performances of the Bayreuth Festival 2014 from 13 October 2013, 18:00 onwards. You can receive these tickets without any waiting times as they will be sent to you in a PDF file via email immediately upon payment.

You will not have to pay any additional fees. You will pay the regular ticket price plus the fee of 2.00 Euro for each seat. The processing fee of 6.00 Euro per invoice will be waived.

Successful ticket purchase does not have any effects on your personal ordering statistics. This means, for example, that your existing waiting times will not be affected.

After activation of the ticket shop on 13 Oct 2013 at 18:00, tickets for the following performances can only be purchased online:

• 05.08.2014 Walküre IV
• 08.08.2014 Holländer III
• 09.08.2014 Lohengrin IV
• 10.08.2014 Ring II (Only available as a complete cycle of the 4 shows)
  11.08.2014
  13.08.2014
  15.08.2014
• 12.08.2014 Tannhäuser III
• 16.08.2014 Holländer IV
• 17.08.2014 Lohengrin V
• 18.08.2014 Tannhäuser IV

Last time Bayreuth tried anything like this, there was a mad scramble and the website locked up immediately. So good luck.

 

Pricey Bayreuth snacks came from Aldi and Lidl

German magazine Focus serves up the tasty tidbit that official Bayreuth caterers Steigenberger used to nip off to Aldi to top up low-running supplies of champagne and smoked salmon. The discounter's cut-price treats would then be sold at vast mark ups - five euros for a salmon canape, nine euros for a glass of champagne.

Current Steigenberger management couldn't or wouldn't discuss past practices with Focus. They did however admit that this year they'd bought 'certain' ingredients from Lidl - not including champagne or salmon.