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1-866-475-7023.
itineraries we have to offer
About the town of Oberammergau
|
The Passion Play is performed every 10 years in
the city of Oberammergau, Germany. Nestled in a
high Alpine valley in Bavaria, Oberammergau
provides a breathtaking setting. The village has
a long tradition of wood carving. The streets
of central Oberammergau have impressive
buildings as well as dozens of woodcarver shops
with items such as toys and religious objects.
According to the vow, all the
actors,
must be born in Oberammergau. Townspeople wrote score
and designed and built the theatre. Long hair and beards
are grown for years for the occasion. More than a
thousand elaborate, colorful costumes add to the
tradition-rich presentation. |
 |
The Play takes place in a covered auditorium
with an open-air stage, built in 1930 to insure
performance regardless of weather conditions.
The open-air stage design creates a backdrop of
green fields, mountains and blue skies. Now,
more than 2,000 citizens make up the actors,
singers, instrumentalists and stage technicians
that bring the play to life in approximately six
hours of playing time. The year 2010 marks
the 41st time the story will be
presented in
Oberammergau.
The
Story
The
play depicts the tragic and moving chronicle of
Christ's final passion. Its history stems from
1632 when Oberammergau was gripped by a deadly
plague which killed almost half of the town's
population. In a final, desperate act of faith,
the village elders pledged that if the village
was spared, it would re-enact the passion of
Christ every 10 years - for all eternity.
Miraculously the village was spared and the
villagers planned the very first Passion Play in
1632.
Tradition dictates that the
play's cast of thousands is drawn from all walks
of life from within the village. The coveted
role of Christ could be the village postman,
butcher or school teacher. The cast spend almost
two years painstakingly rehearsing every detail
of the story for a once only performance of a
lifetime.
In
the midst of the horror of the 30 years' war, the
dreaded plague swept across Europe. High in the Bavarian
Alps, the citizens of Oberammergau attempted to seal
themselves off from the outside world. When a homesick
young man sneaked into the village and brought the
pestilence with him, 84 residents died within 3 weeks.
In desperation, the town council made a solemn vow that
if God would stop the plague, out of gratitude, they would present a play
depicting the life and suffering of Christ for the
duration of their existence. Miraculously, the plague
took no more lives in the town. True to their word, the
villagers performed their first play in 1634, and have continued to do so to this day. The play takes
place out doors where the sky and mountains are the back
drop. A wonderful spectacle of pageantry. World renown
for the costumes and music presentation.
THE MIRACLE BECOMES A
REALITY THANKS TO TRAVEL
The next
Passion Play will take place
in 2010 and the event is
already attracting
worshippers from around the
globe. Demand is sure to be
overwhelming and inevitably
tickets will be in short
supply. However, you can
rely on us to obtain advance
tickets. We have specially
reserved FIRST CLASS tickets
for the 2010 Passion Play
and obtained hotel
accommodation in the
beautiful surrounding area.
Our unbeatable choice of
tours is designed to reveal
the very best of Europe's
fine traditions in a range
of balanced
itineraries including a
visit to Oberammergau and
the Passion Play.
Luxury
motorcoaches will transport
you in safety and comfort
and our experienced Tour
Directors will enthrall you
with their knowledge
throughout the tour.
Choose
from one of the exciting
itineraries listed below.
There will
not be another chance like
this until 2020 so don't
delay and call us today to
avoid disappointment
1-866-475-7023.
Click Here to look at the
tour itineraries we have to offer
