Countdown begins to world’s ‘oldest and largest’ Passion play, held every decade in Germany
THE countdown has begun to the world’s “oldest and largest” Passion play, held every ten years in Oberammergau, Germany.
The Oberammergau Passion Play will be performed 102 times between May and October 2020, and is be expected to attract more than 500,000 visitors to the small Bavarian town.
Dating back to 1633, the story of the Passion is performed and organised solely by inhabitants of the town, as part of a vow made to spare the town from the plague. They promised to re-enact the last week of Jesus’s life, from his entrance into Jerusalem to his crucifixion and resurrection. In 2020, it will be the 42nd time that it has been performed.
The town is in the Roman Catholic heartlands of southern Germany, but the Passion Play is increasingly multicultural and multifaith, reflecting modern Germany. Tickets sell fast, and are in huge demand. Its director, Christian Stückl, has been in charge since 1990; he said last week that his aim was to “bring young people back to the play”.
Speaking at a launch event in London last week, Mr Stückl said that when he took over the play “it had to change; we were losing the young audience, and it was dying. . . It was a mess when I was appointed — a holy mess — and we have worked hard to reconnect with the people of Oberammergau to bring the play back to life.
“Since the Passion Play takes place once every ten years, I keep having to write the text