Lohengrin inspires in Passau: A magical castle festival experience!

Lohengrin inspires in Passau: A magical castle festival experience!

The weather today was perfect for the castle festival at the Veste Oberhaus in Passau. On July 13, 2025, the Lower Bavaria State Theater showed the opera “Lohengrin,” and the large audience was enthusiastic from the start. The exemplary discipline of the audience and their great interest in what was happening on stage contributed to the successful atmosphere of this outdoor performance. Online marker reports that the unified stage, which well characterized the medieval setting, as well as the outstanding, historicizing costumes by Ursula Beutler captivated the audience.

The production, directed by Thomas Ecker, told the plot of “Lohengrin” unadulterated and allowed the dramatic elements of the story to come into their own. But not everything met with unanimous approval: some scenic decisions were considered questionable, such as the bridal choir and Elsa's appearance.

The course of the plot

The story takes place in Brabant, where there is a power vacuum. Elsa, the protagonist, stands before a divine court under the German King Henry, accused of the murder of her brother Gottfried. The manipulative Ortrud brings the charges, supported by Friedrich von Telramund, who is striving for power himself. In the midst of this intrigue, the mysterious Swan Knight appears, who proves Elsa's innocence and wants to marry her - on the condition that she never asks him his name. Such tragic turns represent the theme of the search for identity and home that Wagner addressed in this opera.

The impressive musical realization of the evening came about not least through the orchestra's nuanced rendition of the score. The chorus, performed by Guiran Jeong, showed particularly strong performances in the second and third acts. While Edward Leach gave a good performance in the title role at the beginning, he had difficulties in the crucial third act. The State Theater of Lower Bavaria points out that Iryna Zhytynska also had to overcome some hurdles as Elsa, especially in terms of the comprehensibility of her performance.

The actors in the spotlight

Nevertheless, other soloists impressed the audience: Philipp Mayer as King Heinrich demonstrated excellent technique and diction, while Kyung Chun Kim as Telramund stood out positively. Particularly noteworthy was Ytian Luan, whose natural musicality and technique drew much applause. Even though there was no lack of criticism of the production, the evening still ended with a lot of applause and approval from the audience.

The Castle Festival in Passau is a lot of fun and worth a trip. No matter whether you want to enjoy the performance outdoors or visit the indoor version of “Lohengrin” in Landshut – the opera is a hit! Tickets for the performances can be purchased directly at the theater box office or using the ticket request form, while in Landshut tickets can also be purchased via the web shop.