On November 1, at 8 p.m. (PDT), the new film, “<\/span>Eun Sun Kim: A Journey Into Lohengrin<\/span><\/a>,” was broadcast for the first time, although being available for viewing <\/span>already<\/span><\/a>. Featuring the Korean conductor <\/span>Eun Sun Kim<\/span><\/a> and her labors around the preparation of San Francisco Opera\u2019s 2023 production of Wagner\u2019s “Lohengrin,” the behind-the-scenes film is but one in a growing trend of operatic films designed to show the background of staged operatic marvels.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Having grown up in Seoul, South Korea, she gained her musical training both at home and abroad, reaching the conducting mainstream thanks to her success at the 2008 Lopez Cobos International Opera Conductors Competition. Since then, she has gone on to conduct many high-profile works within the operatic and performance spaces around Europe. In 2021, Kim was appointed music director of San Francisco Opera, effective until the 2030-31 season. The film documents the great challenges posed in staging “Lohengrin,” with the many layers of collaboration being the bulk of the film\u2019s content. Describing the film\u2019s narrative, the Opera House <\/span>wrote<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c<\/span>Eun Sun Kim: A Journey Into Lohengrin<\/span><\/i> offers a rare glimpse into the process of mounting Wagner\u2019s monumental 1850 opera and assembling the many layers of preparation, from coaching roles and staging the opera\u2019s large choral scenes to balancing the sounds of the musicians located in the pit as well as across great distances around the Opera House.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n However, this behind-the-scenes-film, like aforementioned, is not the only one of its kind. Others like Jaime Casanova Amar\u2019s <\/span>2024 film<\/span><\/a> about the Mexican premiere of “Parsifal,” Ozarks Lyric Opera\u2019s 2024 <\/span>film<\/span><\/a>, “An OverKnight Success: The Crazy Life of an Opera Singer,” and even other projects like an <\/span>opera music video<\/span><\/a> and intimately filmed <\/span>live opera<\/span><\/a>, showing that San Francisco Opera is certainly riding a wave of interest.<\/span><\/p>\n Things trend for a reason and in the spirit of operatic and classical music accessibility, it makes sense that they would want to provide opportunities to show their own backstage. In light of this new project, let us examine some of the ways “Lohengrin” has been captured on the screen, both formally in filmed operatic production, and less formally in popular entertainment from before WWII to the famous year of 1991 and beyond.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Starring the eminent conductor <\/span>Leopold Stokowski<\/span><\/a> alongside trained singer and actress <\/span>Deanna Durbin<\/span><\/a>, student of operatic bass <\/span>Andr\u00e9s de Segurola<\/span><\/a>, the original notary in Puccini\u2019s “Gianni Schicci,” the musical is a historical landmark of cinematic musicals. The film uses several classical pieces including Wagner\u2019s “Lohegrin,” namely the Act three prelude, and the “Allellujah” from Mozart\u2019s K. 165 (<\/span>Exsultate, jubilate<\/span><\/a>). Stokowski was also featured in the 1947 film, “<\/span>Carnegie Hall<\/span><\/a>,” where Wagner\u2019s orchestral prelude to “Die Meistersinger von N\u00fcrnberg” can be heard.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n A WWII love triangle, this film balanced between politics and humor with great reception. Starring <\/span>Marlene Dietrich<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>Jean Arthur<\/span><\/a>, the soon-to-be blacklisted <\/span>Stanley Prager<\/span><\/a>, and radio actor <\/span>Michael Raffetto<\/span><\/a>, the Wagnerian element is the film\u2019s use of the overture to “Lohengrin.\u2019” Musically, the film was directed by <\/span>Friedrich Hollaender<\/span><\/a>, a German emigre composer and former student of <\/span>Engelbert Humperdinck<\/span><\/a>. The film was particularly seditious because, as <\/span>Gerd Gem\u00fcnden<\/span><\/a> points out, it \u201cmocks not only Nazi Germany but also American occupation and Puritan morals\u201d in the wake of de-Nazification and American involvement in post-war Germany.<\/span><\/p>\n Generally disliked at the time but now looked on fondly, Visconti\u2019s film about King <\/span>Ludwig II of Bavaria<\/span><\/a> and his adoration of Richard Wagner, historically accurate and the reason why Wagner\u2019s operas were so widely performed and supported by his milieu at the time, the film won many awards for its cinematic captivity. To summarize, Ludwig II became a supporter of Wagner when he heard “Lohengrin” as a teenager. It was not until Wagner\u2019s return to Dresden after 13 years away due to political exile that Ludwig II became an adoring patron of his work. The film features a sampling, from “Lohengrin” to “Tristan und Isolde,” as well as the work, “Elegie in A Flat Major.”<\/span><\/p>\n Produced by <\/span>Brian Large<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>Werner Herzog<\/span><\/a> for <\/span>Unitel GmbH & Co. KG<\/span><\/a> (or just UNITEL), this version featured some of the most high-profile Wagnerian singers of the day. From <\/span>Paul Frey<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>Gabriele Schnaut<\/span><\/a> to <\/span>Cheryl Studer<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>Manfred Schenk<\/span><\/a>, the work was featured a time in global history where the powers of the world were changing in drastic ways. As <\/span>Bayreuth Festival production<\/span><\/a>, the film was a touchstone for the highest quality of cinematic treatment of Wagner\u2019s world, with tasteful staging and subtly modern costuming.<\/span><\/p>\n Directed by <\/span>Chef Pietro D’Agostino<\/span><\/a> and filmed at the <\/span>Gran Teatre del Liceu<\/span><\/a> in Barcelona, Spain, the film helped bring Wagner into the contemporary period by featuring an artistic style far more non-traditional than previous productions. From available <\/span>clips<\/span><\/a>, one can easily see how provocative the choices made must have been, this being before the era of Wagnerian productions we currently find ourselves in. Critical reception was generally <\/span>negative<\/span><\/a> and the choices to go so far from the Middle Ages epoch was not favored in the slightest.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n“One Hundred Men and a Girl<\/a>” (1937, Henry Koster)<\/strong><\/h3>\n
“A Foreign Affair<\/a>” (1948, Billy Wilder)<\/strong><\/h3>\n
“Ludwig<\/a>” (1973, Luchino Visconti)<\/strong><\/h3>\n
“Lohengrin” (1991, Werner Herzog<\/a>)<\/strong><\/h3>\n
“Wagner: Lohengrin” (2006, Pietro D’Agostino<\/a>)<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Listen\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n