Richard Wagner
Richard Wagner (1813-1883) was a German opera composer, whose ideas and theories were a major departure from the conventions of his day and brought about changes to opera and musical theatre which last to this day. He was also one of the first modern thinkers to introduce concepts that affected the development of the modern concept of multimedia (Wikipedia, 2007d).
Wagner believed opera of his day focussed too much on music and lacked enough focus on drama - a synthesis which had not been seen since the performance of ancient-Greek tragedies. He proposed opera become a fusion of the individual arts combining music, dance, acting, art, architecture etc., under the direction of a single creative mind to express one coherent effect (Macmillan, 2001). These productions would then be presented in an environment intended to immerse the audience in the performance.
Wagner would propose this environment along with a series of changes required to create this ideal artwork in his 1849 essay The Art Work of the Future. Wagner’s concept of Gesamtkunstwerk - literally translated as synthesis of the arts - would achieve this by changing the way opera was written and staged, and would even alter the opera-house itself (Wagner, 1849) (Wikipedia, 2007b). This concept fits into the integration and immersion concepts of our conceptual framework. Many of these changes have become the norm today.
The Opera Theatre
The first major change Wagner made to opera involved drastically reshaping the opera-theatre. By arranging seating in a tiered U-shaped layout, the audience would directly face the stage, regardless of where they were seated - focussing the audiences attention on the stage.
Another change was to dim the auditorium lights during performances, removing the visual distraction of other audience members - again focusing the audiences attention.
The orchestra was also considered a visual distraction by Wagner. His solution was to place the orchestra in a sunken pit, separated from the audience by a low wall. This has the dual advantage of hiding the movement of the conductor and musicians and preventing the sound of the orchestra from overwhelming the singers on-stage (Wagner, 1849).
Wagner believed these changes helped to make a “visual gulf” between the auditorium and the stage, so that the audience gain the perception that nothing separates them from the events taking place on-stage (Wagner, 1849).
Changes to Staging
Wagner also added staging notes in his operas, these included instructions on the addition of sound effects, the design and movement of set elements and the use of coloured lighting.
Wagner went as far as constructing a new theatre in which to prove his ideas, the construction of the Festspielhaus in Bayreuth, Germany, opened in 1876 - which today continues to host opera written by Wagner and other composers (Wikipedia, 2007a).
Despite his contributions to the arts, Richard Wagner remained a controversial figure, - for professional and personal reasons, both during his life and after his death in 1883. Today, his works and theories continue to polarize audiences and scholars alike (Wikipedia, 2007d).
Unforeseen Problems
Given the wide ranging scope of the changes made to opera by Wagner, it was inevitable that some of these ideas would require further refinement. One such problem quickly became apparent at the Festspielhaus - the orchestra pit. By concealing the orchestra from view, the conductor also lost his view of the stage forcing them to no-longer rely on visual cues from the actors on-stage. Some conductors had great difficulty adapting.