Kozyra

madonna from regensburg

madonna from regensburg

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squated Stadtfest in Regensburg,
July 2005

This performance/procession in Regensburg was a variation on the "road festival" of Pelago. This time the Madonna progressed through the town and was carried onto the deck of a boat. The boat sailed along the Danube to a point more than a dozen kilometers away, specifically to Walhalla — the impressive white marble "temple to the glory of the nation" built by Ludwig I in the mid 19th century and modeled after the Parthenon in Athens. The figure, adorned with youth scouting bandannas and accompanied by the audience, was carried up the several hundred steps leading to the temple atop the hill. At the structure's entrance stood a row of young people, torches in their hands. The Madonna disappeared among thick smoke and moments later Kozyra — transformed into an opera singer — emerged from inside the temple. Guided by the Cardinal-Maestro in a rat mask, she performed the aria of the Queen of the Night from The Magic Flute.