Author: Jeffrey Brillhart

In January 2023, my neighbor, Rachelle Fleming, texted me, inviting me to her home to meet Hugh McElyea, a composer friend. Knowing Rachelle, I knew that we would have a lovely time, but I wasn’t expecting to encounter a composer who was absolutely fascinated by Dietrich Bonhoeffer. What ensued was a wonderful evening of three musicians engaging in all manner of conversation about all sorts of topics, including that of an oratorio that draws parallels between the crucifixion of Christ and Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s death at the hands of the Nazis. By evening’s end, I knew that BMPC would have to perform Hugh’s “Tenebrae: The Passion of Dietrich Bonhoeffer.”

Who is Dietrich Bonhoeffer?

Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a German pastor and theologian who spoke out against the Nazi regime on the day Adolf Hitler came to power. His ties to the July 20, 1944, conspiracy to overthrow the Nazi regime led to his execution in 1945. His theological writings are regarded as classics throughout the Christian world.

What is Tenebrae?

“Tenebrae” means “Darkness.” In the early church, monks gathered on the eve of Good Friday to remember Jesus’s last days. This became a traditional 4th-century monastic service called “Tenebrae,” meaning “darkness.” During the service, thirteen candles are extinguished one by one as the gospel account of Jesus’s Passion is accompanied by Gregorian Chants. The church is left in total darkness as the service ends.

Who was Maria von Wedemeyer?

A few days before his arrest, Dietrich was engaged to Maria von Wedemeyer, a young woman he had taught as a student. He befriended several prison guards who smuggled letters to his family and fiancée, even arranging brief face-to-face meetings. Through his poems and letters, we gain a deeply personal glimpse into the life of the man. In this presentation, the mezzo-soprano also portrays Mary Magdalene.

While setting the ancient service of Tenebrae in wartime Berlin, the music reflects the tragedy of war and the sacrifice of one man who stood up and spoke truth to power. Having made the ultimate sacrifice, Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s martyrdom remains a source of inspiration and a warning in our own time.

As the Allied bombing of Berlin neared, Bonhoeffer realized that he might not survive and opened his Bible to read the Passion of Jesus for the last time. He was taken from Tegel Prison to the Buchenwald concentration camp and later transferred to the Flossenburg prison, where he was tried for treason and hanged on April 9, 1945, just days before the end of World War II. In the end, his final words to a fellow prisoner were, “For me, this is the end, but also the beginning. It is certain that our joy is hidden in our suffering and our life in death.”

“Tenebrae: The Passion of Dietrich Bonhoeffer” will take place on Friday, March 29, at 7:30 p.m. in the sanctuary. The production features Nicholas Provenzale as Bonhoeffer, Rachelle Fleming playing the dual roles of Maria von Wedemeyer and Mary Magdalene, and WRTI host Michael Bolton as the narrator. The Bryn Mawr Chamber Singers and a chamber orchestra round out the cast. You are invited to a pre-performance talk at 6:30 p.m. in the Fullerton room with the composer, Hugh McElyea, and Rev. Rob Schenck, the founder and president of “The Dietrich Bonhoeffer Institute.” The performance will be live-streamed.

My first winter at BMPC was in 1983. What a winter that was. That February, Philadelphia was struck by a blizzard named “Megapolitan Blizzard” (21 inches of snow). Record cold temperatures prevailed. I still remember going to Chinatown with BMPC members for dinner and thinking, “I’ve never been this cold before!” (this is from a guy who grew up in Iowa and then went to graduate school in Rochester, NY!) That spring, the Music and Fine Arts Council decided to offer a “Midwinter Festival” the following February, on the Saturday before Lent – as a kind of “Bryn Mawr Mardi Gras.” Plenty of skeptics said, “Jeff, BMPC will never go for this.” Happily, they were wrong, and a tradition began that continued for nearly 25 years.

Last spring, our council decided to revive the Midwinter Festival, offering “100 Years of Cabaret” on Saturday, February 10. Produced and directed by Lawana Scales and starring Sherri Shields and Louisa Mygatt as your “guides,” this will be an evening to remember. What will you experience at this year’s festival? Amazing homemade desserts and a program that will walk the audience through 100 years of American history through comedy routines, music, skits, and surprises. Fats Waller, George Gershwin, Leonard Bernstein, and PDQ Bach are among the composers you will hear. You’ll hear highlights from “Les Misérables,” “Wicked,” “Porgy and Bess,” and “Miss Saigon.” How many of you know that we have a pastor who is an expert in “lip-syncing?” Did you know that at least two of our pastors are musically gifted and passionate about Carole King? Have you ever heard George Peters do a comedy routine? Did you know that one of the choir’s basses is a fan of Julia Child? Did you know that we have at least two “rappers” in the choir? And, for those of you who remember our early Midwinter Festivals, yes, there will be a “Surprise of the evening.”

Tickets are flying. You may purchase yours Sunday after the 10 a.m. service or from the Music and Fine Arts office during office hours. Chase away the winter blues at BMPC! Celebrate 100 years of Cabaret.

The word “Advent” means “coming,” or “drawing near.” During this season, Christians throughout the world prepare for the anniversary of Christ’s first coming through reflection on our yearning for wholeness and salvation. Such reflection can serve to heighten our sense of anticipation for the Christ Child’s birth, which we will celebrate on Christmas. The Advent season also reminds us that Christ will come again at the end of time to reign over heaven and earth in majesty.

To help you “draw near”, the Sanctuary Choir, Singing for Life, Youth Chorale and Bryn Mawr Festival Brass will present an Advent Service of Lessons and Carols, this Sunday, December 10, at 4 p.m. This service originated in 1880 with E. W. Benson, Bishop of Truro Cathedral in England. His service included readings and carols for Christmas, and was offered as a prelude to the Christmas Eve Midnight Mass. It was adapted in 1918 by Dean Eric Milner-White for use at King’s College Chapel, Cambridge, England. The BBC began broadcasting this service nationally in 1928. Today, it has been broadcast internationally for more than seventy- five years and is among the most popular and widely heard church services in the world.

In 1934, Dean Milner-White created A Procession with Carols on Advent Sunday for use at King’s, basing it on his earlier Lessons and Carols for Christmas. In his preface to this new service, Milner-White wrote: “In the old English liturgies, the Advent Offices made a preparation for the coming of our Lord to this earth far more vivid and eager than those of our present Prayer Book. The purpose of the service is “not to celebrate Christmas, but to expect it.”

Sunday’s service is filled with gorgeous choral works, readings chosen to prepare you for the coming of Christ, and many carols for you to contribute your vocal gift to the glory of God. An offering will be received to benefit Prevention Point Philadelphia, an organization committed to helping drug addicted people in Philadelphia and the surrounding area.