The Festive Gala at the Semperoper Dresden brings back the splendour of UFA Film for one scintillating night full of famous melodies. Christian Thielemann and his Staatskapelle Dresden together with outstanding singers Angela Denoke, Elisabeth Kulman und Daniel Behle pay homage to the hit songs of the so-called dream factory, which dominated the German film industry from 1917 to 1945, and produced classics like “Metropolis”, “The Three from the Filling Station” and “The Blue Angel”. Created in the first half of the 20th century, the UFA productions are marked by the ambivalence of culture and politics that is characteristic for this part of German history. For ZDF and the artists, the concert offers the chance for a deliberate, critical review of the “film dreams” of the past and the undeniable “dissonances” of the nation’s history.
Im Weissen Rössl
Ralph Benatzky’s cult classic operetta The White Horse Inn, a romantic comedy set in the picturesque Salzkammergut in Austria, has enjoyed great success around the world, with countless productions on Broadway, in the West End, Paris and Berlin. At the Vienna Volksoper, Jan Philipp Gloger stages the work as a witty criticism against modern mass tourism while preserving the charm of the work, which lovingly pokes fun at German and Austrian sensibilities: “Gloger finds (…) a contemporary exuberance that makes fun of all kinds of things that deserve it” (Kurier). Annette Dasch “sparkles both vocally and comedically” (Kronenzeitung) as the snappy innkeeper of the ‘Rössl’ opposite Jakob Semotan, who sings her head waiter with “bright and balmy” tones (Der Standard). The rest of the ensemble is engaging and funny throughout, including actor Götz Schubert as the Berlin manufacturer Giesecke and beloved German entertainer Harald Schmidt, who delights the Viennese audience with his Swabian dialect as eco-tourist Prof. Dr. Hinzelmann – a great success!