International May Festival

May Festival, International

May

Germany's second oldest music festival (after the Bayreuth Festival) is the Wiesbaden May Festival, founded in 1896. Kaiser Wilhelm II came to Wiesbaden, which is about 26 miles west of Frankfurt, to officiate at the grand opening.
The month-long festival offers eight or nine full-length operas performed in the original language, symphonic concerts, ballet, drama, experimental theater, and mime. Most of the festival events are held in the rococo-style Hessian State Theater, the Kleines Haus (a small auditorium for plays), and the Kurhaus (for symphonic concerts). Among the world-renowned groups that have been invited to perform at the festival are the Netherlands Dance Theatre, Japan's Red Buddha Theatre, the Salzburg Marionettes, the Hamburg State Opera, the Berlin State Opera, the Zurich Opera, the Welsh Philharmonic Orchestra Cardiff, and the Greek National Ballet.

CONTACTS:
Internationale Maifestspiele in Wiesbaden
Hessisches Staatstheater Wiesbaden
Christian-Zair-St. 3
Wiesbaden, Hesse 65189 Germany
49-611-132-32-5
www.staatstheater-wiesbaden.de

SOURCES:
GdWrldFest-1985, p. 87
IntlThFolk-1979, p. 151
MusFestEurBrit-1980, p. 106