Play 'The Marriage' Explores Mahler's Final Days and Alma's Indecision
The University of Michigan/Ann Arbor recently showcased a work-in-progress play titled 'The Marriage: The Mahlers in New York,' featuring Esther van Zyl and directed by Jack Tamburri. Scheduled for performance at the Colorado Mahlerfest on May 14, the play is based on the author's 2023 novel and employs both first-person and third-person perspectives, with only two actors, one being the author portraying Mahler. Inspired by Sir Michael Redgrave, it takes the form of a staged reading. The narrative includes Mahler's Ninth Symphony and his death mask, emphasizing his marriage to Alma, who was just 22 at their 1902 wedding. Alma’s affair with Walter Gropius nearly jeopardized their union. Critic Henry Krehbiel unfavorably compared Mahler to Wagner, and the play received backing from Ken Kiesler and Mark Clague.
Key facts
- The play 'The Marriage: The Mahlers in New York' premiered as a work-in-progress at the University of Michigan/Ann Arbor.
- The play stars Esther van Zyl and is directed by Jack Tamburri.
- The next staging is at the Colorado Mahlerfest on May 14 with lighting design.
- The play adapts the author's 2023 novel of the same name.
- Only two actors perform; the author plays Mahler.
- Costumes and sets are rejected; the format is a staged reading.
- The play interpolates the closing minutes of Mahler's Ninth Symphony.
- Leonard Bernstein described the Ninth Symphony as a musical enactment of death.
- Mahler's death mask, found 'smiling' and 'forgiving' by Alma, influenced the play.
- Mahler was 41 and Alma 22 when they married in 1902.
- Alma's affair with Walter Gropius almost destroyed the marriage.
- Alma's indecision is contrasted with Cosima Wagner's devotion.
- The critic Henry Krehbiel is quoted in the play.
- The play was supported by Ken Kiesler and Mark Clague at the University of Michigan School of Music.
Entities
Artists
- Gustav Mahler
- Alma Mahler
- Esther van Zyl
- Jack Tamburri
- Leonard Bernstein
- Richard Wagner
- Cosima Wagner
- Walter Gropius
- Olive Fremstad
- Natalie Curtis
- Henry Krehbiel
- Anton Seidl
- Sir Michael Redgrave
- Alfred Lord Tennyson
- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
- Ken Kiesler
- Mark Clague
Institutions
- University of Michigan
- University of Michigan School of Music
- Colorado Mahlerfest
Locations
- Ann Arbor
- United States
- Colorado
- New York
- Munich
- Vienna