2022: events not to be missed
There are also many hopes for the new year 2022 in the field of culture: the Documenta exhibition of contemporary art in Kassel, the performance “The Passion of the Christ” in the Bavarian village of Oberammergau and the Oktoberfest in Munich should finally take place. Plus, many events in the cultural capitals of Europe 2022: Lithuanian Kaunas, Serbian Novi Sad and Eshe in Luxembourg.
Passion of the Christ in the Bavarian village of Oberammergau
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the world-famous performance of The Passion of the Christ was postponed: first from 2020 to 2021, and then for another year. Now production director Christian Stückl is anxiously looking forward to May 14, the day of the premiere: “No one knows what will happen. We will start rehearsals and hope.” For Stückl, it is clear that Jesus in the new production should become even more vivid and expressive, and the roles of women should take on more weight than before. “We’re excited that things are finally starting up again,” says actress Eva-Maria Reiser, who plays Maria.
The history of the production dates back to the 17th century: in 1633, the inhabitants of Oberammergau made a vow to perform the Passion every 10 years, if no one else died from the plague. According to legend, this is what happened. The entire Bavarian village is involved in the work on the performance – as they say, without sleep and rest. The staging, among other things, is an important source of income for the local population. Millions of euros are spent on the creation of a performance each time. The fees to actors and actresses alone are 20 million for a five-month season.
The big problem is the current rule that only 25 percent of the seats can be filled in theaters. And although 75 percent of the tickets have already been sold today, most of them, most likely, will have to be returned.
Winter Events – 2022
We also write about the rest of the upcoming events of the new year marked “if the coronavirus does not interfere.” So, on January 12 in Marburg, Germany, the jury will announce the winner of the “Antisword of the Year” contest. Following this, on January 20, the television award named after Adolf Grimme (Grimme-Preis) will announce its nominees. From 16 to 23 January, the Max Ophüls Preis film festival is scheduled in Saarbrücken. Well, on January 31, the main music award of the world Grammy Awards will die down.
The celebration of the 90th anniversary of the most famous contemporary artist in Germany Gerhard Richter (Gerhard Richter) will be held on 10 February. From 10 to 20 February – the famous Berlin International Film Festival Berlinale.
What awaits us in the spring of 2022
The cultural spring of Germany will begin in Leipzig, where a book fair is scheduled from 17 to 20 March. The annual press ball is due to take place in Berlin on 29 April. Venice will open the famous biennale of contemporary art on April 23rd. On the same day, May 14, we will have the Eurovision final in Turin, Italy, and the premiere of a new production of The Passion of the Christ in Oberammergau, Bavaria. Well, from May 17 to May 28, a film festival should be held in French Cannes.
In London, on May 28, the show “Voyage” (“Journey”) of the legendary Swedes from the ABBA group starts: for 428 euros, viewers will see their avatars in a stadium specially built for this purpose.
Cultural Summer – 2022
June 2022 will be marked by contemporary art exhibitions. From June 16 to June 19, the Art Basel fair will be held in Basel, Switzerland, and on June 18, the famous Documenta, an exhibition of contemporary art, will open in Kassel, Germany. From July 25 in Bayreuth in Bavaria – “Ring of the Nibelungen” as part of the traditional Wagner music festival. From August 31 to September 10, the Venice Film Festival will be held.
And already on September 17, Oktoberfest will begin in Munich.
Fall 2022 Events
Slovenia will be the guest of honor at the Frankfurt Book Fair scheduled for October 19-23. In November, the German national theater award “Faust” and the international Emmy award will be presented. The European Film Awards will take place in December. And at the end of the year, the German Language Society will again choose the “Word of the Year”.