Join us for this ACF in-house screening of the virtual reading 'Nourishing the Soul: The Beginnings of the Salzburg Festival' by Gregorij H. von Leitis, followed by a reception.

Due to ongoing travel restrictions, we are unfortunately not able to welcome Gregorij H. von Leitis and Michael Lahr in person for this event.

This screening is featuring an introduction by Michael Lahr tracing the origins of the Salzburger Festspiele | Salzburg Festival idea, followed by Gregorij H. von Leitis bringing the beginnings of the Salzburg Festival to life by presenting selected texts by Hugo von Hofmannsthal, Harry Graf Kessler, Karl Kraus, Stefan Zweig and many more.

This event is presented on the occasion of the Centennial of the Salzburg Festival in 2020.

Please note: This screening is 40 minutes long and will be presented in German with English subtitles.

Tickets are limited and need to be booked on our website in advance. You will not be able to attend the event without a pre-booked ticket.

101 years ago, in August 1920, “Jedermann” (Everyman), Hugo von Hofmannsthal’s 'Play on the Dying of the Rich Man' was performed for the first time, on the cathedral square in Salzburg.

The stage had been built from the boards of the wooden barracks at the nearby village of Grödig which had formed the largest POW camp on Austrian soil during WWI. Max Reinhardt, one of the most famous theater directors of his times, employed the architecture and the special conditions of the place for dramatic effects: shouts calling out “Jedermann” resounded from the towers of the surrounding churches and the Hohensalzburg Fortress high above the city, while cathedral bells rang at decisive moments.

With the founding of the Salzburg Festival, its Jewish founders, Hugo von Hofmannsthal and Max Reinhardt, courageously set an example in a greatly shrunken Austria, suffering from the consequences of World War I, amidst vociferous nationalist tendencies, anti-Semitic insults, inflation and economic hardship.

In cooperation with the ACF New York, recorded at the ACF Berlin.

Conception and Introduction: Michael Lahr von Leitis
Narrator: Gregorij von Leitis

Please note: Visitors must have a negative (rapid flow) covid test or be fully vaccinated. We ask you also follow social distancing, wear a mask and sanitise your hands. Please do not visit the ACF if you have Covid symptoms.