Ludus de nato Infante mirificus

SYNOPSIS

In a rugged Alpine cave, a group of witches are observing the evening winter sky bereft of snow with their magic mirror. Ancient prophecies have predicted for this night the birth of a wonderful child who will bring all diabolical deception to an end. Fearing the loss of their evil powers, this satanic pack plans to prevent this miraculous birth with all their might.
A mysterious star heralding the arrival of the child appears twinkling in the sky. Despite all attempts on the part of the sorceresses, the star cannot be eliminated and they turn their furious attention to the annihilation of the heavily pregnant mother of the heralded child. They espy her in their magic mirror accompanied by her husband and donkey travelling on rough mountain paths. The pack of witches cast a demonic spell on the weather: darkness falls, a strong wind whips up and it begins to snow; the travellers immediately lose their way. The witches disperse in devilish triumph; the storm abates.
Three weary shepherds emerge from the darkness. They are overjoyed to discover a protective shelter. A short time later, two further shepherds trudge past, also on the search for refuge from the freezing cold. They tell of their encounter with two individuals who had lost their way in the ice and snow whom they directed towards a hut where they would find shelter. Exhausted by their exertions, the five ultimately fall asleep.
Suddenly, one of the shepherds wakes up with a start from his wonderful dream: three oriental kings had appeared before him on their way to Bethlehem to a miraculous newly born child. One of the other shepherds tells of a similar image: he dreamed that a child bringing good fortune to the world had been born in a stable in Bethlehem – born of the woman whom the shepherds had shown the way to a safe place to shelter just a few hours previously. The five resolve to investigate the basis of these dreams and, as the night sky has become clearer, they now make their way along the wintry paths. Along the dreamless nocturnal snowy plateau, children are carrying glittering candles towards Bethlehem. The flowers still slumbering in the snow dream of spring and light.
And what about the witches? They curse furiously, blaming each other for the failure of their plan. The older witch comforts them: some time they will have the opportunity of eradicating the child. In the meantime, they could just as well focus on human beings who were far easier prey. The witches disperse, grinding their teeth, while the night becomes filled with the jubilant voices of angels and children.

COMMENTARY

For Orff it was an obvious choice to augment his Comoedia de Christi Resurrectione with a nativity play. And, in contrast to his Osterspiel which was premiered in a televised performance, the Weihnachtsspiel was an immediate success when premiered on stage. The most remarkable feature of the first performance of Ludus de nato Infante mirificus was that the musicians remained invisible throughout, playing offstage and intermittently in tape recordings: a conception which transformed the stage area into a floating, intangible space, highlighting the dream-like visionary quality of the work.