Bayreuth Festival's Dark History Questioned at 150th Anniversary

The Bayreuth Festival, celebrating its 150th anniversary, remains sold out despite its problematic past extending beyond 1945. The article questions why audiences continue to embrace morally questionable art, using the festival's enduring popularity as a case study. The festival's history is tied to Richard Wagner and later exploited by the Nazi regime, yet it retains cultural prestige. The piece reflects on the dissonance between artistic appreciation and ethical judgment, suggesting that the mirror we hold up to the festival also reflects our own complicity.