Bayreuth
capital and anti-capital
pp. 205-222
Abstract
If Paris was the archetypal metropolis, the paradigmatic centre of commerce, fashion and art as entertainment for a bored bourgeoisie, Richard Wagner selected Bayreuth because it was small, off the beaten track and unknown. He appropriated the town and dedicated it to the notion of art as a timeless spiritual experience of religious intensity. He wrote articles to explain the concept for the location in just these terms. But launching the Bayreuth festival in 1876 required significant capital and Wagner was an inspired and creative entrepreneur. Though not a metropolis, Bayreuth became a centre, at least for a few weeks in the summer. Wagner's enduring success was proven by the waiting list currently estimated at 10–15 years for the festival, which represents the longest-running such event of the European stage.
Publication details
Published in:
Hibbitt Richard (2017) Other capitals of the nineteenth century: an alternative mapping of literary and cultural space. Basingstoke, Palgrave Macmillan.
Pages: 205-222
DOI: 10.1057/978-1-137-57085-7_10
Full citation:
Vazsonyi Nicholas (2017) „Bayreuth: capital and anti-capital“, In: R. Hibbitt (ed.), Other capitals of the nineteenth century, Basingstoke, Palgrave Macmillan, 205–222.