Saturday, September 9:
Departure of Math. Maier, the last visitor. After that, preparations for the journey. In the evening a long discussion about the performances and the experiences gained during them. R. no longer wants the matadors Betz and Niemann; the former, in his rage at not being called before the curtain, made a downright mockery of his role! Brandt’s achievements far short of what one might have expected! Richter not sure of a single tempo, dismal experiences indeed!
I mention the scene between Waltraute and Brünnhilde and observe that, wonderful as it is, it does prove tiring, because already too much music had been heard before it. R. agrees with me and decides to divide up the first act, to make a long pause after the introduction and begin the act with the orchestral “Siegfried’s Journey.” In this way Götterdämmerung would be a repetition of the whole, an introduction and three parts. Costumes, scenery, everything must be done anew for the repeat performances. R. is very sad, says he wishes he could die! He very comically calls Betz and N. theater parasites!