[W., right silhouette, head and upper body.]

Wagner in 1835

Wagner in Norway

by Kristian Evensen

In the spring of 1839, Wagner's economic situation had become so desperate that he began planning a flight to London to escape from his creditors. During the summer of 1839 the theatre in Riga was arranging a series of performances in Mitau - Wagner conducts. On July 9th Wagner and Minna fled in secrecy. The flight would be very dramatic. During the night between the 10th and 11th July the pair, with their dog Robber, illegally crossed the Russian-Prussian border. They went on to Königsberg in a carriage. Near the town the carriage capsized and Minna was hurt - possibly a miscarriage. (The pair remained childless.) Finally, on the 19th July, Wagner and Minna boarded the small sailing-ship Thetis which left Pillau - the harbour of Königsberg - for London.

The Thetis was a small merchant vessel with a crew of seven. Wagner had to be smuggled aboard because he had no passport. The passage from Pillau to London would normally take about eight days - this was in the middle of the summer and a trip like this might be rather nice. This was not to be, however. Repeated storms drove the ship off course. An especially heavy storm the 27th of July forced the captain to seek refuge at the southern coast of Norway, and the 29th of July they landed in Sandvika at Borøya near the little town of Tvedestrand.

Opposite the harbour in Sandvika there is a vertical cliff overhanging the sea. As the crew on the Thetis lowered and folded the sails, they sang their seaman's calls in rhythm with their work. The echo from the cliff made an impression on Wagner, and he later used a similar effect in the sailor's choir in Der fliegende Holländer. This opera was begun with a prose draft the following year. The action of the opera was initially located to Scotland, but in the final version Wagner localized the events to this very place, Sandvika at Borøya. Wagner later maintained - in his autobiography Mein Leben - that it was in this place the opera got its physiognomy and colour («Physiognomie und Farbe»). (This expression is translated as «..its own characteristic musico-poetic coloring» by Andrew Grey 83.)

On the 31st of July the captain made an attempt to continue the voyage, despite the warnings of the Norwegian pilot. The storm now threw the Thetis against an underwater cliff that threatened to splinter the ship. All went well, however, the collision with the cliff had been relatively harmless. Boat, crew and passengers could safely return to Sandvika, with only minor damages to the ship.

Finally, on the 1st of August they were able to go on. For four days they all enjoyed the fine summer weather. Then a new storm rose - the 7ht of August would be the worst day of the whole voyage. The storm was made even worse by lightning and thunder. Wagner and Minna were certain their last hours had arrived.

The 12th of August the Thetis finally entered the mouth of the Thames. Wagner and Frau left the Thetis at Gravesend and took a river steamboat up to London.

In 1998 Wolfgang Wagner, Wagner's grandson, also visits Norway. The 22nd of April 1998 he arrived at Sandvika by the same route that Richard Wagner came 159 years earlier.

There now is plans for a performance of the Holländer at this spot in august 2001 - on a floating scene. This is planned to be a co-production between the Norwegian Opera, the Theatre of Agder county, the choir of the Opera of Riga and the city of Tvedestrand. Director of this staging will be the Norwegian actor and theatre director Bentein Bårdson.

It remains a very strong hope that this unique project will be realized - and that the necessary means will be given. Such a pioneering outdoor performance of Wagner's first "mature" opera will certainly be noted internationally due to its character and its setting - and it will place Borøya, Tvedestrand and the Norwegian South Coast on the international cultural map.

News:
The production of the Holländer in Tvedestrand is postponed until 2002. The reasons for this is that the financing is taking longer than planned and that the Opera of Riga was unable to participate in 2001. (Source: Aftenposten and Fædrelandsvennen Nov 11, 99.)

Latest news:
The production of the Holländer in Tvedestrand is postponed indefinitely. In the end, Tvedestrand county was unable to raise the last 1.5 m. kroner. The good news is that there will be established a fund with the goal of financing this production some time in the future. (Source: Fædrelandsvennen Mar 07, 2001.)

More information on the production of the Holländer in Tvedestrand is available at http://www.denflyvendehollender.no.

The URL of this page is http://www.trell.org/wagner/norway.htm