The Flying Dutchman

Adolphe Appia Visionary of Invisible(fr)

The life and work of stage designer ADOLPHE APPIA, originator of the most profound agitations in contemporary theatre. Through the dynamic alternation of animated drawings and choreographies specially conceived for the film, we discover the steps of his artistic evolution.

Tannhäuser and the Singers' Contest at Wartburg Castle(en)

TANNHÄUSER UND DER SÄNGERKRIEG AUF WARTBURG is a grand opera by Richard Wagner in three acts. After experiencing boundless sensuality and freedom with the fun-loving Venus (soprano), the singer Tannhäuser (Tenor) finds it impossible to conform to the cultured setting of his betrothed Elizabeth (soprano), who loves him. During a singing contest, Tannhäuser describes the affair with Venus as the ultimate love experience and because of that, he is cast out from the established society. Thanks to Elizabeth's intervention, he is allowed to undertake a pilgrimage to the Pope to ask for the Holy Father's pardon. If the Pope accepts to forgive him, he would be allowed to take back his place in society. Tannhäuser accepts. But fate will not allow him to meet with his beloved Elizabeth again in this life. This is a recording of the legendary staging by Götz Friedrich for the 1978 Bayreuth Festival conducted by Sir Colin Davis.

Lisztomania(en)

In the 19th century, Romantic composer/pianist Franz Liszt tries to end his hedonistic ways but keeps getting sucked back in by his seductive fellow composer Richard Wagner.

Richard Wagner: Parsifal(de)

The Met production easily has the most beautiful staging, designed by Otto Schenck, who also produced the fabulous set for the Met's previous Ring cycle. Kurt Moll is a wonderful Gurnemanz, but compared to his studio recording under Karajan a decade earlier it has lost some of its original velvety body and luster. As Parsifal, Jerusalem is starting to show some wear and tear on his voice at the Met in 1992 as opposed to his prime form at Bayreuth in 1981, but is still quite good; only Placido Domingo could compete with him in the role at that time.

Wagner: Die Walküre(de)

Die Walküre (The Valkyrie), WWV 86B, is the second of the four music dramas that constitute Richard Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen, (English: The Ring of the Nibelung). It was performed, as a single opera, at the National Theatre Munich on 26 June 1870, and received its first performance as part of the Ring cycle at the Bayreuth Festspielhaus on 14 August 1876.

Wagner: Das Rheingold(en)

In the depths of the Rhine, the three Rhinemaidens guard the Rhinegold, a treasure of immeasurable value. The Nibelung dwarf Alberich is dazzled by the sight of it. The girls explain that whoever wins the gold and forges it into a ring will gain power over the world, but must first renounce love. Frustrated by his unsuccessful attempts to catch one of the girls, Alberich curses love and steals the gold. Wotan, lord of the gods, is reproached by his wife Fricka: he has promised to give Freia, goddess of youth, to the giants Fasolt and Fafner in return for their building a fortress for the gods. When the giants demand their reward, Loge, the god of fire, suggests an alternative payment: the ring Alberich has forged from the Rhinegold, and his other treasures. The giants agree, and Wotan and Loge leave for the Nibelungs’ underground home.

Lohengrin(en)

This performance of the Richard Wagner opera Logengrin was filmed in high definition for the Bayreuth Festival in 2011, and features vocalists like Georg Zeppenfeld, Klaus Florian Vogt, and Anette Dasch in the leading roles.

The Golden Ring(en)

Watching the Vienna Philharmonic, Georg Solti, and a stellar cast record Wagner's immense Götterdämmerung for Decca in the fall of 1964 provides a thousand lessons in the art of working under pressure. For this classic documentary, The Golden Ring, a BBC camera crew eavesdropped as producer John Culshaw guided his engineering team through tricky technical maneuvers far removed from the relative ease of modern digital editing. What utter concentration and focus Birgit Nilsson, Wolfgang Windgassen, Gottlob Frick, and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau bring to their collective and individual singing! Solti, for his part, oozes energy and exactitude as he pleads for greater precision and frets over details in the car en route to the sessions.

Valkyrie Limited(en)

The documentary draws a portrait of an opera director who is staging Richard Wagner’s Die Walküre. He is torn between the tragicomic routine of an opera house and his own perception of Wagner and the Ring cycle. The film witnesses the director’s drama in maintaining the fragile link between a well-constructed performance and his own vision that lies within the music and the narrative, and is seen as German expressionism-like nightmares.

Wagner's Master Singer, Hitler's Siegfried - The Life and Times of Max(de)

The singer Max Lorenz was Hitler's favourite tenor: married to a Jewess, he was also homosexual. The biography of this outstanding Wagner singer is also closely bound up with the story of Haus Wahnfried in Bayreuth.

Der Fliegende Holländer(de)

This vivid film of Wagner's romatic opera succeeds in conveying what has famously been called "the wind that blows out at you whenever you open the score", including Daland's boat anchoring against the Sandwike cliffs, the red-sailed phantom ship, and the ghost crew rising from the dead. "Scenes that recall classic horror films... Brilliantly successful" (Nürnberger Nachrichten), "Captures the works' essence" (Süddeutsche Zeitung). With a superb cast; conducted by Wagner authority Wolfgang Sawallisch.

Parsifal(de)

Recorded live at the Festspielhaus, Baden-Baden, Germany, August 2004. Kent Nagano, conductor. Nikolaus Lehnhoff, stage director.

Richard Wagner: Tannhäuser(de)

Witness the Zurich Opera's stunning production of Richard Wagner's masterpiece "Tannhauser," conducted by Franz Welser-Most and featuring Peter Sieffert (Tannhauser), Solveig Kringelborn (Elisabeth) and Roman Trekel (von Eschenbach). Initially produced in Dresden in 1845, "Tannhauser" instilled a sense of wonder in a few of Strauss's ardent friends and admirers, among them Robert Schumann and Franz Liszt. Opera buffs will love it.

Wagner: Die Walküre(de)

The Singing City(en)

Portrait about the planning and rehearsal of Richard Wagner's Parsifal directed by Calixto Bieito at the opera house in Stuttgart.

Puguntha Veedu(ta)

A rich brother and sister's relationship grows dangerously strained as they marry into a poor family

The Amulet Game(th)

Jin, a young man, is unexpectedly drawn into the world of sacred amulets. He soon learns that this trade is fast-paced, deals strictly in cash, and, most notably, has no fixed pricing. Under the guidance of a legendary amulet master named Moo, Jin begins to understand the business. But he sees an opportunity beyond the usual buying and selling — he discovers that by creating his own amulets and manipulating their perceived value, he can make much more profit. By using just the words “merit” and “faith,” things start to unfold rapidly. Greed eventually drives Jin to a point where there may be no turning back.

Something Casual(en)

Alex, a first-generation latino artist, and Frankie, a professional dancer, navigate the soulless casual hookup culture of Los Angeles. Dating apps and casual sex reign, as they both deny their feelings and continue seeing other people while they fall in love. A series of misunderstandings leaves these two star-crossed lovers oscillating between confusion (ghosting and ignoring) and obsession (sex and pasta). But what happens when they finally meet someone different? Do they even know how to love anymore?

Mysaa(te)

Unafraid of war and unwilling to stop until she finds that one answer. She carries no doubts. Only the ache of an answer she's searched her whole life.

Boucherie fine(fr)

A butcher whose meat is most tender, surrounded successively by ephemeral and delightful cashiers.

Coda(en)

A famous pianist at the twilight of his career meets a free-spirited music critic who soon becomes his rock as his mental state deteriorates.

Battle of the Year(en)

A down-on-his-luck coach is hired to prepare a team of the best American dancers for an international tournament that attracts all the best crews from around the world, but the Americans haven't won in fifteen years.

Vitus(de)

Vitus tells the story of a highly-gifted boy (played by real-life piano prodigy Teo Gheorghiu) whose parents have demanding and ambitious plans for him.

Jersey Boys(en)

A musical biopic of the Four Seasons—the rise, the tough times and personal clashes, and the ultimate triumph of a group of friends whose music became symbolic of a generation. Far from a mere tribute concert, it gets to the heart of the relationships at the centre of the group, with a special focus on frontman Frankie Valli, the small kid with the big falsetto.

Honey: Rise Up and Dance(en)

Street dancer Skyler comes out of the shadow of her trained dancer sister, Tosha, & joins a dance competition with the Honey dance studio; the prize is a college scholarship.

Mo' Better Blues(en)

Talented but self-centered trumpeter Bleek Gilliam is obsessed with his music and indecisiveness about his girlfriends Indigo and Clarke. But when he is forced to come to the aid of his manager and childhood friend, Bleek finds his world more fragile than he ever imagined.

Suburbia(en)

When household tensions and a sense of worthlessness overcome Evan, he finds escape when he clings with the orphans of a throw-away society. The runaways hold on to each other like a family until a tragedy tears them apart.

Teen Spirit(en)

A shy teenager living on the Isle of Wight dreams of pop stardom. With the help of an unlikely mentor, she enters a singing competition that will test her integrity, talent, and ambition.

XOXO(en)

XOXO follows six strangers whose lives collide in one frenetic, dream-chasing, hopelessly romantic night.

The Mambo Kings(en)

The Mambo Kings tells the story of César and Nestor Castillo, brothers and aspiring musicians who flee from Cuba to America in search of the American Dream.

Drumline: A New Beat(en)

A girl from New York attends a college in Atlanta to join their once-famous marching band.

Hounddog(en)

A drama set in the American South, where a precocious, troubled girl finds a safe haven in the music and movement of Elvis Presley.

Ruth & Boaz(en)

A talented singer leaves the Atlanta music scene and starts over in small-town Tennessee, where she finds love and new purpose but can't escape the past.

One Chance(en)

This film follows the remarkable and inspirational true story of Paul Potts, a shy, bullied shop assistant by day and an amateur opera singer by night.

Dinner in America(en)

An on-the-lam punk rocker and a young woman obsessed with a local band go on an unexpected and epic journey together through the decaying suburbs of the American Midwest.

Cadillac Records(en)

The story of sex, violence, race and rock and roll in 1950s Chicago, and the exciting but turbulent lives of some of America's musical legends, including Muddy Waters, Leonard Chess, Little Walter, Howlin' Wolf, Etta James and Chuck Berry.

Lara(de)

Today is Lara’s 60th birthday, which happens to fall on the same day as her pianist son’s career-defining concert. A failed pianist herself, Lara spends the time before his performance pacing about Berlin—boiling with jealousy, nerves, and pride—trying to get hold of her elusive son.

Listen to Your Heart(en)

Danny Foster doesn't have much: an apartment as small as his paychecks, no family, and a struggling music career. Yet for him, "every day is a great day to be alive," an attitude he gained from his mother's unwavering optimism during her losing battle with cancer. It's love at first sight when Danny meets Ariana, a wealthy girl from Greenwich, CT who tragically cannot hear the music she inspires him to write. Ariana, hearing impaired since childhood, is torn between hanging onto the shelter her controlling mother provides and fighting for a love that, if given the chance, might just change her life

Pure Country 2: The Gift(en)

Three angels bestow the gift of song to a young girl, who must follow a series of rules in order hold on to it during her rise to fame and fortune.

The Secret: Dare to Dream(en)

A widow with three children hires a handyman to fix her house during a major storm. When not doing home repairs, he shares his philosophy of believing in the power of the universe to deliver what we want.