Overview
- The first staged Parsifal in Dresden in nearly 40 years opened to strong applause for the music and clear boos for the production at the premiere.
- Director Floris Visser tells the story through a schoolboy visitor and places the action in a tourist-like abbey ruin with a souvenir stand and benches.
- The staging weaves in present-day themes such as war, inequality and faith, drawing praise for vivid images from some viewers and rejection from others.
- Daniele Gatti led the Sächsische Staatskapelle and chorus in a widely acclaimed performance, with Georg Zeppenfeld, Eric Cutler and Michèle Losier standing out.
- More performances are booked in the coming weeks, and the company plans to bring the staging back in 2027 after the last Parsifal production, from 1988, stayed in repertory until 2010.