The Rudolf Steiner Archive

On the Performance of our Popular Christmas Plays

In the last essay, I shared how I became familiar with the German Christmas plays that are performed every year at the Goetheanum in Dornach. These performances depict scenes that were shared by Karl Julius Schröer. Only in one instance this year did I try to act against the principle by making a small addition to bring something orally or in writing into the tradition. Something particularly characteristic of these plays was that the players, before presenting the content of what was being depicted, already stepped before their audience as a kind of choir. This choral element also occurs at many points in the plays, interrupting the progress of the action. In the traditional “Song of the Stars”, which preceded the performance of the “Birth of Christ Play”, an introductory chorus has been preserved in which the players greet everything they would like to relate to before they begin the performance. They greet everything that is close to their hearts at this important moment: from the Holy Trinity, to the individual categories of the audience, to the “little twigs” of their star, which the caroler carries. It is now certain to me that such an introductory chorus originally also preceded the first of the plays, the “Paradise Play,” and that it was very similar in form to the Star Song of the “Birth of Christ Play.” I have now ventured to try to provide such an introductory chorus before the Paradise Play as well, because I believe that, in doing so, I am acting in the spirit of tradition and recreating something that was approximately present, even if the oral and written tradition has lost it. The sentiments of the “Star Song” for the Nativity Play must be found there, somewhat differently.

I love my singing, come here friends,
Today is a day of great joy and celebration;
There sits before me this very lonely month,
Which I would like to hear wail and weep.
Therefore, gather around me in a circle;
They shall drive the people away with singing.
My dear ones, make my singing,
That it may inspire the people well,
And see that singing is good,
And a heartfelt and strong voice.
But first we want to greet everyone,
Who has found their way into this hall today.
We greet God the Father on his highest throne;
And we greet his only Son;
We also greet the Holy Spirit, Who will show us the true way;
And greet the Holy Trinity:
The Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost in unity.
We greet Adam and Eve in the garden,
Where we would all like to be today.
And we greet the trees and the flowers
As much as we do in paradise.
And we also greet, in a very fine way
The wonderful big birds that sing;
We greet the whole firmament,
That the dear Lord has placed at the end of the world.
We greet the officials of the firmament;
We greet the master today as always.
We greet the spiritual Lord,
Without whom we may have to learn.
We greet the Lord, his feast
With all his complaints for the best;
For the Lord has provided
What he so enjoys so much. —
And now, my dear ones, sing along,
In the middle of it all, a tree stands;
From that, a person must not eat,
When he wants to harvest the right thing:
The tree should be greeted,
And all the fruits that hang on it.
Eve, the wicked one, who ate of it,
And Adam, the foolish man.
They were cast out by God;
We want to hear it said.
We don't want to greet the devil,
From whom our dear God protects us;
We want to pull on his tail,
And rip out all his hair. —
My dear ones, you have all heard my singing,
What it once did for them in paradise.
Now we greet our teacher well
And greet the good Muot,
With whom we can sing in our groves
Without many beats. —
So, my dear singers have heard
Where an old friend of ours is celebrating.

Ir liabn meini singa kumts freindli her,
Is g’schircht heunt zu engerer größten freid und er;
Is sitzt vor eng dö gonzi ersami gmoan,
Dö will eng fleißi a wail wol hören an.
Drum stellts eng um mi in ana scheibn;
Den leutn sollts dö wail mit singa vartreibn.
Ir liabn meini singa, mochts frumi augn,
Daß si dö leut recht guat erbaun,
Und schauts, daß enga singa is guat,
Und herzli enga stimm und wuat.
Erst oba wolln ma dö grüaßn alle,
Dö sie heunt hobn eingfundn in dem saale.
Grüaßn ma God Voda im höchsten thron;
Und grüaßn ma a sein einiga Son;
Grüaßn ma a dazua den haligen Geist,
Der unsern söln dö wahren wege weist;
Und grüaßn ma dö gonzi haligi Dreifaltikeit:
Den Voda, den Son und den Geist in da einikeit.
Grüaßn ma Adam und Eva im garten drein,
In den ma olli a gern mechtn htein.
Und grüaßn ma olli bam und tiralein
So vüel als in dem paradeise sein
Und grüaßn ma a ganz fein
Dö wunderschön großn und kloan vögalein;
Grüaßn ma a dös gonzi firmament,
Dös dr liab Hergod hot gsetzt ans weltenend.
Grüaßn ma dö erenfesten amtsleut;
Grüaßn ma den maister heunt wia allezeit.
Grüaßn ma a dö geistlinga herrn,
Oni dö ma ka gspül derfn lern.
Grüaßn ma den gmoaherrn, erenfest
Mit seina gonzn beschwerd aufs allerbest;
Denn dö hot dr liab Hergod b’stellt
Wails erm so gor so guat gfällt. —
Und noa, meini liabn singa, stimmts noamal an,
In da mittn tuat a bam stan;
Von dem derf ka mensch eßn nit,
Wonn ar will holtn d’rechti sitt:
Den bam wolln ma a grüaßn an,
Und olli früacht, dö hängent dran.
D’Eva, dö bösi, dö hot gessen davon,
Unda dr Adam, dr dummi mon.
Da wurdens vo God verstoßn;
Dös woll’n ma uns gsogt sei laßn. —
ur den teifül wolln ma ja grüaßn nit,
Vor den uns dr liabi God bhüat;
Ma wolln ar an schwanz zupfa,
Und erm olli hoar ausrupfa. —
Ir liabn meini singa hobts olli ghört,
Woas si in paradeis dereinst bekert.
Nu grüaßn ma a unsern lehrmaister guat
Und grüaßn ma a den guaten muot,
Mit dem ar unseri grobn stimma
Fei, oni vül schläg hot richtn kinna. —
So, meini liabn singa hobts ghört
Wos enger olter freind von eng begehtt.