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See scenes from IU Jacobs School of Music’s staging of ‘Parsifal’

Nov 12, 2019

As part of the Indiana University Bicentennial celebration, IU Jacobs School of Music Opera Theater is remounting Richard Wagner’s monumental opera “Parsifal.”

Wagner’s final opera, based on Arthurian knight Parsifal’s quest for the Holy Grail, is a story of redemption full of magic and miracles, enchanted castles, forests and more. It is widely accepted as a masterpiece, but the size and scope of “Parsifal” mean it is rarely performed in the United States.

From the 1940s to the 1970s, a tradition was established of regularly producing “Parsifal” at IU. Reviving this tradition after a 43-year hiatus, this work of more than four hours premiered Nov. 10 and will again be performed on the Musical Arts Center stage Nov. 13 and 16.

Faculty and staff with a valid IU email address can enter to win a pair of tickets – valued at $43 each – to the Nov. 16 performance. Single tickets are on sale at the Musical Arts Center box office, which is open from 11:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, by phone at 812-855-7433 or on the IU Opera website.

Actors and the chorus in the Act 1 Grail Hall ceremony of Parsifal
Parsifal kneels next to a swan
Knights and squires tumble through a windstorm in a dress rehearsal for Parsifal
Klingsor summons an enchanted garden of flower maidens

Photos courtesy of Sarah J. Slover, IU Jacobs School of Music

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