Lohengrin in Paris: Wagner and the Revanchards
Steven Huebner on the attempts to stage Richard Wagner's works in Paris between the 1870s and 1891.
éra. The reason for this long delay was not that following the punitive Treaty of Frankfurt the French public reacted with blind hostility to anything German; national pride did not find performances of works by the composers Weber, Flotow, and the Lortzing intolerable. The problem with the reception of Wagner's operas in France was not so much that he was German, but that he was Wagner.
äuser failed miserably, barely making it through three performances after the extraordinary number of 164 rehearsals. Whatever the reasons for the fiasco may have been, whether it was unsympathetic French taste, the obnoxious whistle-toting gentlemen of the Jockey Club, or antagonism between Wagner and individuals involved in the production, the failure left an enduring streak of resentment in the composer.
To continue reading this article you need to purchase a subscription, available from only £5.
Start my trial subscription now
If you have already purchased access, or are a print & archive subscriber, please ensure you are logged in.
Please email digital@historytoday.com if you have any problems.
