Opera House Cancels Production of Mozart’s Idomeneo

Citing security concerns, the Deutsche Oper Berlin has decided to cancel its production of Mozart’s Idomeneo. As staged, the production includes a scene featuring the severed head of Mohammed, along with Poseidon, Jesus, and Buddha. When the opera house premiered the production in 2003, it drew fire. The director of the opera house said that she had received advice from state officials either to cut the scene, or to cancel the production, because the scene was likely to draw increased criticism and “pose an incalculable security risk to the public and employees.” The production was created by the famed and sometimes controversial director Hans Neuenfels, who has also put on productions for the Berlin Comic Opera and the world famous Salzburg Festival. Read more here in an article from MSNBC.com. The director’s decision has already elicited criticism. Read more in a Bloomberg News article here.