TANNHäUSER

RICHARD WAGNER

THEORETICAL PAPER PROJECT

The cave of Venus - opening ballet

Tannhäuser sings to Venus to ask to be free "Dir töne Lob"

Venus angrily curses Tannhäuser, Tannhäuser evokes Mary and the Venusburg disappears

Shepard boy, Pilgrims, Tannhäuser prays at the shrine of Mary

The Hunting party approaches the praying Tannhäuser

Act 2 - Elizabeth in the hall of Song "Dich, teure Halle!"

The procession of the guests into the hall of song

The contest of song

Act 3 - the valley of the Wartburg in autumn. Elizabeth prays at the shrine of Mary in the evening.

Night. Wolfram sings a hymn to the evening star.

The Reappearance of Venus

Elizabeth's funeral procession

The death of Tannhäuser over the body of Elizabeth

For this theoretical project, I wanted to lean into the storybook, painterly quality of Tannhäuser. Its mythological medieval setting seemed ripe for this approach. I imagined the Venusberg as a living breathing cave of moving painted red silk drapery, undulating with the dancers in the ecstacies of love. Within this I imagined a literal flying love-nest that Venus and Tannhäuser are within. When Tannhäuser banishes Venus, all the silks would be released and drop to the floor, pulling through a trap in the floor until it is gone, revealing the valley of the Wartburg. The castle is in the background, the shrine of the virgin and the pilgrims path are in the foreground. Act 2 takes place in the Hall of Song in the Castle of the Wartburg, which I imagined as a beautiful cage. All the furniture would be of clear acrylic, but in the shapes of classic Medieval designs. Act 3 brings us back to the valley of the Wartburg, but now in autumn and evening/night.