Tell Play

Tell (William) Play

Thursdays and Saturdays from late June to early SeptemberThe Swiss legendary hero William Tell symbolized the struggle for individual and political freedom. When he defied the Austrian authorities, he was forced to shoot an apple off his son's head in order to gain his freedom. He was later arrested for threatening the governor's life, saved the same governor's life en route to prison, escaped, and ultimately killed the governor in an ambush. These events supposedly inspired the Swiss people to rebel against Austrian rule.
Although there is no hard evidence to support William Tell's existence, the story of his test as a marksman has passed into folklore. German dramatist J. C. Friedrich von Schiller (1759-1805) wrote a play about Tell in 1804. Set in the environs of Altdorf, the legendary site of the apple-shooting incident, Schiller's play has been performed at an open-air theater in Interlaken, Switzerland, since 1912.
See also Wilhelm Tell Festival
CONTACTS:
Tell-Freilichtspiele
Postfach
Interlaken, 3800 Switzerland
41-33-822-3722; fax: 41-33-822-5722
www.tellspiele.ch/e/fakten
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