Scene rehearsal with Siegfried and Mime, rehearsal at six o’clock in the Wagner Theatre. Kapellmeister Levi welcomed. Swimming rehearsal. Today Hill attempted the plunge into the abyss. What palpitations of the heart, what fear he endured, are beyond description. The magic which Wagner exerted over him is powerful. He accomplished this much: that this timid man brought himself to undertake a feat which no intendant nor any stage director whatsoever could ever have compelled him to perform.
Revised English translation by Jo Cousins [© Jo Cousins | WAGNER Salon]