Engelbert Humperdinck’s “Hänsel and Gretel” enchants audiences at its premiere in Gera

  • The collection of Grimm’s Children’s and Household Tales, first published in 1812, was also read by the German composer Engelbert Humperdinck (1854–1921) before going to sleep. His sister Adelheid Wette (1858–1915) used it to create the libretto for Humperdinck’s full-length children’s opera, which uses many folk songs and clearly follows in the tradition of Wagner. Since its premiere under the baton of Richard Strauss on December 23, 1893, in Weimar, the fairy tale opera has been particularly popular during the Christmas season. The fairy tale serves as a gateway for many children to enter the world of opera for the first time with Hänsel and Gretel.
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  • The premiere of this absolute classic took place at the end of November in Gera – in an opulent and technically elaborate production by General Director Kay Kuntze and under the baton of GMD Ruben Gazarian. The evening enchanted the entire audience, young and old alike. This new production is now a permanent fixture in the pre-Christmas program of the Altenburg Gera Theater and will continue to delight thousands of children and adults in the coming seasons.
  • (Photos: Ronny Ristok)

  • Thüringische Landeszeitung;     Ostthüringer Zeitung (Wolfgang Hirsch), November 2022
  •  “From the pit, “General” Ruben Gazarian conducts the “Kinderstubenweihfestspiel” in a manner that is as audible, powerful, and stirring as a Wagnerian world drama—which is essentially what it is! […]
  • What a blessing: this blissful, inspiring evening in Gera’s dream factory, simply called Theater.”