Shortly before the start of a concert in the Elbphilharmonie, climate activists of the “last generation” glued themselves to a conductor’s podium on Wednesday evening. In a video that the group shared on Twitter, a woman and a man can be seen, each wearing a safety vest, standing at the lectern on stage and speaking to the audience. The activists called for resistance to what they saw as the government’s indecisive climate policy. On the video you can hear shouts from the audience like “Oh, no” or “Get out.
The police had announced in the evening that the two activists had been released from the railing after a short time and taken into custody. A spokesman for the Elbphilharmonie confirmed the disruptive action on Thursday. Two environmental activists climbed onto the stage, glued themselves to the banister of the conductor’s desk and read out a statement.
The concert started six minutes late after the activists left the stage, the spokesman said. “Of course, we want our audience to have a trouble-free concert experience. But we also understand the concern for our natural resources that the young protesters peacefully expressed.”
In her speech, a Last Generation activist said, “Just like there is only one Beethoven violin concerto, we only have this one planet whose boundaries we so disregard that climate-related disasters are becoming more frequent and deadly.” And: “It will there will no longer be an Elbphilharmonie to enjoy Beethoven when Hamburg is under water.”
