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Religion

No heaven without hell

May 3, 2020

The internationally acclaimed Berlin Radio Choir has joined forces with American theater director and visual artist Robert Wilson for a production that marries Martin Luther’s writings and translations with the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. Wilson’s image theater conjures both anxiety and hope in a timeless statement that places Luther among the great thinkers of history.

https://p.dw.com/p/2n3H3

Pitch darkness. Through the doors come 50 figures in long robes. They position themselves symmetrically along the balustrade surrounding the oval stage. Then a bluish light softly illuminates their whitened faces. They begin singing. The music is Bach. A large figure suddenly appears on the stage below them. It is clothed in a black academic gown and the medieval cap of a Doctor of Divinity. This is Martin Luther. In a forceful voice, he quotes from the Book of Revelation. "Luther Dancing with the Gods" is a gripping performance.