Der Freischütz

In a run-down clubhouse on the edge of the forest, a hunting club clings stubbornly to its traditions. For example, the young hunter Max must prove himself in a shooting test before he can marry his beloved Agathe. Max hasn’t had a successful shot in weeks and is full of worries. Out of fear of failure, he becomes involved in dark forces and practices. Will those magical rituals grant him a direct hit? The Swiss theatre legend Christoph Marthaler joins forces with the equally legendary scenographer Anna Viebrock. Together they playfully undermine the symbolic status of Der Freischütz: featuring a wealth of folk songs, Carl Maria von Weber’s opera was soon dubbed the first   ̒Deutsche Nationaloper’. Marthaler allows the singers and actors to expose the provincial narrow-mindedness of the characters, who are trapped in tics and rituals. An amusing reinvention of the German classic, in which beer glasses are bound to be raised.