The Threepenny Opera at Theater an der Wien

The operas of George Frideric Handel lived in the 1920s, a rediscovery, hence the Handel parody Beggar's Opera by John Gay and Christopher Pepusch came to light again. Bertolt Brecht wrote based on a translation of the Beggar's Opera (1728) by Elisabeth Hauptmann, the Threepenny Opera 1928/29 for the Theater am Schiffbauerdamm in Berlin. When he heard of the avant-garde Kurt Weill was to provide the music, Brecht feared for the catchiness, but the first samples of Weill's songs convinced him. Weill made use both then current forms and rhythms and classical schemes: One finds tango and shimmy as baroque polyphony and arias - only everything gets at Weill a double bottom; such as Peachum morning chorale is a provocative caricature Protestant work ethic. The pieces in total is a cynical satire on the hypocrisy of the bourgeoisie in times of capitalism. Weill himself described the Threepenny Opera as "most consistent response to Wagner," The Ballad of the Pirate Jenny was born in Senta's ballad about dismissal in The Flying Dutchman. The premiere was the beginning of a world success, which was indeed interrupted by the defamation by the Nazis as "degenerate art", after the Second World War but inexorably continued - the relevance of the piece is still unbroken.

Peachum is the organizer and exploiter of London's beggars. His daughter Polly, however, he has no control, she marries without permission his opponent, the bandit Macheath called Mack the Knife. Polly's parents want to eliminate MacHeath by intrigue: he is to be delivered to the police and thus the gallows. Polly warns MacHeath, he settles. Only a Macheath can not escape: his weekly visit to the whores. The whore Jenny is bribed by Mrs Peachum and MacHeath squeals to the police. He is arrested, a back and forth with bribery and blackmail to obtain the release or execution of Macheath begins. After all, no one wants the £ 1,000 bribe for Macheath pay release, the gangster has come to the gallows. At the last moment arrives mounted messenger of the Queen, which pardoned MacHeath, because it is the day of her coronation.