Messing With Wagner

A new production of Wagner’s Die Meistersinger has sparked angry boos. The staging, by one of Germany’s most progressive directors, includes an “on-stage disruption that breaks the score at a crucial moment and leads to an additional scene of dialogue.” At one point, “the music grinds to a halt, and the cast start a debate on what constitutes ‘German and genuine’. If you are a Wagnerite, this is blasphemy.”