Bayreuth Festival streams Wagner's 'Rienzi' live to cinemas in Germany and beyond

The Bayreuth Festival will broadcast its new staging of Richard Wagner's rarely performed opera "Rienzi" to movie theatres on 26 July. The production, directed by Alexandra Szemerédy and Magdolna Parditka with musical direction by Nathalie Stutzmann, features singers such as Andreas Schager, Gabriela Scherer and Michael Nagy.

The live transmission will begin about two hours after the performance opens at the Festspielhaus, allowing shorter intermissions and a ten‑minute closing program for cinema audiences. Screenings are planned in German cinemas, including the Filmhaus in Saarbrücken, and may extend to other European venues. Radio Clásica will also carry the live broadcast.

This marks the first time the prestigious festival has added "Rienzi" to its programme, coinciding with the festival’s anniversary and highlighting a noteworthy expansion of its outreach.