Show TOWN OF THE PASSION PLAY aa IF a I 1 L 4 ft a judas in private life paints pictures oberammergau gives to the world drama of christianity every decade prepared by national geographic society washington D C service CHANGE which emphasizes aaion A unchanging tradition has taken place in oberammergau germany the small bavarian town where every decade a performance of the passion play attracts thousands of visitors the change came through the death of anton lang for thirty years the former christus of the passion play death however changes the players but does doeg not s top stop the I 1 presentation of the passion play which for centuries has been performed to fulfill a vow of the villagers in the seventeenth century until about years ago the sight of the towering mountains filled the people of oberammergau with awe in fact fear and they were looked upon more as drawbacks than as objects of beauty and inspiration the custom of offsetting the depressing effect of the looming rocky background by vivid color still prevails and besides old but ever fresh fresco paintings depicting scenes from the bible on the walls of the houses new ones are beginning to decorate several homes these show a more modern trend and generally are done by young bavarian artists they lend vivid color to a street scene already bright with houses painted yellow pink green and blue hardly a house lacks a balcony and this like all the windowsills window sills is lined with a profusion of flowers green shutters and painted frames around the windows put a special stress on the eyes of most homes usually near the door in large letters is exhibited the name and occupation of the owner who might well appear to be the proprietor of the entire valley as he complacently walks through the streets and fields hills and mountains born here he feels himself part of all this in the home and fields the inside of his birthplace breathes the same spirit the center is not the kitchen whence the healthful frugal meals come but the living room with a carved wooden crucifix solemnly hanging in one corner there is the cradle of family life there the men and women and children assemble when they come home from field or shop the fields yield just enough grass for the cattle and potatoes for the I 1 people though most of the villagers have their urn own 0 little gardens farmhouse and stable are usually in in one building this saves the peasant many a step in bad weather and keeps him always near his beloved cows which in turn help supply warmth in the long cold winter the arrival of the white king is hailed by everybody for the th thick ick blanket he always spreads over the I 1 I 1 mountains and the valley does not mean being buried tor for four or five months oberammergau lies in about the same latitude as montreal and masses of snow cover the mountains at times to a depth of 30 feet many visitors come to try their luck on skis and skiing becomes an easy accomplishment for the local youngsters st peter distributes milk singing and whistling hubert mayr the st peter of the passion play drives his little pony cart through the town every day distributing milk among the people how happy and and pleased he is that at last his lifes dream has come I 1 true and he has become st peter I 1 the meek manners of hugo rutz the village blacksmith would never lead one to guess that on the stage he was the fiery high priest caiaphas inciting the mob against jesus anton lechner teacher of drawing at the local woodcarving wood carving school is just as much of a surprise ludwig lang fierce looking Ba rabbas on the stage is a peaceful cowherd who may be seen walking along the street at 6 almost any morning driving a herd of cows into the fields and hills and not returning until 6 at night that is the rush hour for the cows and traffic has to comply with their whims as they slowly trot homeward wa rd never minding the honking of automobiles that might get into their path the play Is their life mission just as the ability to act seems to be in the blood of the majority the people of oberammergau hold a deeply inbred feeling 1 of personal responsibility toward their important task their sacred tradition they live and die for their play they do not play to live but live to play which may at times appear incomprehensible to the hurried traveler rushing in and out again without ever penetrating more deeply into the meaning of the villagers work habits and customs all amusements such as dancing are prohibited during the solid year of preparation for and concentration upon the passion play yet the village during its six months of rehearsing under georg langs most able direction there are more than 30 families of the name of lang in oberammergau dons festive attire houses look more attractive gardens streets walks and parks hum with activity the year 1940 will display about the same course of things but there will be more buses and auto mobiles from may until september once again for a period of five months the village will be handed over willy nilly to the countless visitors their prejudices and criticisms cismas their whims their admiration and praise of what is but natural to those laboring in the homes and playing on the stage of the mammoth theater before spectators occasionally as often as five times a week how the play Is presented from 8 15 a m to p m with two hours recess for lunch the thousands watch the performance with tense interest from beginning to end never turning their eyes which are often dimmed with ith tears from the recently built and modernized central stage in front of il i flanked by the house of pilate and the palace of annas opens the proscenium feet wide on which rain or sunshine the mass scenes take place and the 47 members of the chorus all local talent appear led in and out by the majestic figure of the speaker of the prologue whose task is to introduce bac each h act of a tableau he has more lines than any other member of the cast there are 24 of these artistically set and lavishly mounted pictures irregularly scattered among the 16 acts and representing scenes from the old testament running parallel with the new the very beginning of the performance for mance announced by the boom of a cannon discharged on a distant hill plunges the audience into deep silence and absorption orchestra choir prologue and tableaux heighten this mood then the curtains part impressive climax of the drama now christ triumphantly enters jerusalem the jealous priests begin their work against him while christ bids farewell to his mother and friends at bethany before returning to the city of his doom there the last supper unites him and his twelve disciples once more judas hastens away to betray his master in the mount of olives christ is seized the afternoon sees him before the high council slandered mocked and jeered and eventually sent to pontius pilate who passes him on to king herod peter repents his sin of denial whereas judas finds no way out but the rope christ is scourged urged and crowned with thorns and presented to a raging mob in a scene of highest dramatic values pilate finally hands him over to his enemies and with the cross on his bleeding shoulders christ staggers up to Col golgotha gotha to be fastened to the cro cross ss to die pierced by a spear in rea realistic lis ii c manner we see him rise again from the tomb and in the finest of all tableaux ascend to heaven |