Bayreuth Festival marks 150 years amid Wagner antisemitism controversy

The Bayreuth Festival, celebrating its 150th anniversary, opened on 25 July with performances of Wagner’s works, including the full Ring cycle. Italian broadcaster Rai Radio 3 will air the events live, and the city has been promoted by The New York Times as a travel hotspot, though tickets for the opera house are already sold out.

The milestone has revived debate over Wagner’s legacy. An outdoor exhibition called “Verstummte Stimmen” honors Jewish artists murdered during the Nazi era, highlighting the festival’s historic ties to antisemitism and Adolf Hitler’s patronage. A planned talk by journalist Michel Friedman on Wagner’s antisemitism was first cancelled over security concerns, then reinstated after festival director Katharina Wagner apologized, describing the “ground in Bayreuth as contaminated.” The controversy centres on whether the festival can be celebrated without confronting its problematic past.