About the work
Mörder, Hoffnung der Frauen is Paul Hindemith's one-act setting of Oskar Kokoschka's expressionist drama of the same name from 1907, composed in 1919. It premiered on 4 June 1921 at the Württemberg State Theatre in Stuttgart, under the same conductor, Fritz Busch, as Das Nusch-Nuschi, with sets and choreography by Oskar Schlemmer.
Plot
In an archaic prehistoric setting, a nameless Man breaks through a band of warriors and encounters a Woman, mistress of a fortress. Mutual wounding leads to a violent, ambivalent encounter between the two, at the end of which the Woman dies and the remaining figures flee in horror.
Cultural significance
The premiere was at first wildly acclaimed, but by the second performance it was already accompanied by politically motivated disturbances. The work is regarded as one of the earliest and most influential stage settings of literary Expressionism.