Tomás Saraceno (b. 1973), Ancestral Futures, 2026, Haus der Kunst.

On Art, Opera, and a Giant Sphere of Trash

Special for the Arts Reader

MUNICH, GERMANY. As a native Minnesotan, I’ve grown accustomed to the diverse array of fabulous museums in the Twin Cities. The Walker Art Center, Minneapolis Institute of Art, and the Science Museum of Minnesota are iconic and nationally renowned for a reason. However, after a month in Munich, I’m hardly wanting for cultural engagement. The Bayerische Staatsoper and Gärtnerplatztheater are within walking distance of my flat, and every few blocks produce a new church, cultural center, or monument to explore.

It’s no surprise that a cultural behemoth such as Munich hosts more than eighty museums, with installations ranging from high art to BMWs. There’s truly something for everyone when it comes to the cultural fabric of the city, and it’s almost overwhelming to know where to visit first.

Much to my excitement, Munich hosts a yearly event called Die Lange Nacht der Münchner Museen, basically “the long night of Munich museums.” For just 20 euros per adult, ticket holders can attend over 100 museums and other special event spaces in the city from 6 pm to 1 am. Many cultural centers host performances and events in the museums throughout the evening, with the majority including a cash bar.

Many participating venues offer tours or events that require pre-registration. Spaces are limited, and early signup is suggested. Since I was late to the party, I couldn’t attend a Munich sewage tour that detailed the cholera outbreak of 1854 (a tragedy!) or a medieval watchman tour beginning at the historic Marienplatz (double whammy!), but don’t worry – there were plenty of other options to fill my evening.

I began my long museum night at the Amerika Haus at Karolinenplatz. Transatlantic relations between Germany and the United States have been a staple of my musical career over the last several years, so scoping it out for a potential future collaboration seemed prudent. Plenty of folks were milling about, enjoying the stunning aerial photography of Jonathan Miller, an American artist whose pieces bring attention to humanity’s impact on the world around us.

There are several shuttle bus lines that connect all of the participating museums, but I opted to walk. Fall has indeed arrived here in Munich, but the rain was light enough that, with a trusty umbrella and pair of solid rain boots, walking proved to be a much more enjoyable way to make my way through the city.

I was also interested in the Jüdisches Museum München, which proved to be a thoughtfully curated exhibition of Jewish religion and culture in Munich. The museum absolutely acknowledged and asked attendees to reckon with the lead-up to and aftermath of the Holocaust while also celebrating Jewish achievement and joy in the city. A special highlight was a musical performance on the oud by Jessica Bonamy-Pergament. The performance was part of the museum’s current installation, Yalla, which highlights the relationship between Jewish and Arab cultures.

Still committed to attending my museums on foot, I hoofed it over to the Bayerisches Nationalmuseum, one of the major cultural touchstones of the city, for the 8:30 pm improvised opera performance. As an opera singer myself, I knew this wasn’t one to miss. Much to my pleasant surprise, I was too far behind in line to make it into the first performance, but I was happy to wait until the 9:30 show. Equally packed as the first, the second performance thoroughly entertained me with the quartet and pianist’s remarkable ability to come up with operatic arias and scenes on the spot! The troupe, known as La Triviata, was certainly the highlight of my evening. However, as I looked around, I realized they were likely the highlight of many other delighted attendees’ evenings, performing scenes that ranged from being angry at your electric hand mixer to taming a frog and bringing a patient back to life using a defibrillator.

With my phone battery and personal energy level beginning to drop, I still made my way through the expansive Medieval Art exhibit on the main floor. Spanning six rooms and several centuries, I was thoroughly impressed by the preservation of largely sacred art from centuries ago. I was in search of plague lore (a special interest of mine), and while there were no direct mentions, the 1350s were conspicuously missing from most of the curated pieces. Perhaps there wasn’t much art happening as pestilence raged over the entirety of Europe, Munich included. There is a marked difference between the art of the 1330s and 1360s, which I found interesting. An art historian would definitely be better equipped to explain how the plague impacted the artistic movements that followed.

While I still had a couple more stops on my list, I felt my long museum night winding down as I continued down the street to the Haus der Kunst. However, I’m glad I popped in, as I was totally mesmerized by what could only be described as a giant sphere of trash. Of course, I happily slid off my rain boots and entered the installation, joining my fellow trash enthusiasts to lie down in the carefully curated plastic bags. There was a peacefulness and expansiveness to the Rewe and Aldi bags floating above me. As the pulsing music from the club echoed in my ears, with several languages being spoken around me, a rush of gratitude and amazement washed over me. After playing around with the idea of Germany for nearly a decade, I had finally done it. I was here, lying in plastic bags next to a stranger smelling of patchouli. And it was amazing.

It’s easy to be overstimulated in 2026. If I’m not actively rehearsing, performing, or practicing, I probably have a podcast humming in the background. But sometime during my spherical meditation, my phone had died, and I was forced to walk the rest of the way home in silence, with only the rain hitting my umbrella as company. I reflected on the new discoveries of the evening, the electric energy, the dark corridors of the museums. What a privilege it was to be where I am.

There are dozens of other museums to check out in the city, but I was so glad to get a primer this weekend in Munich. The city may be known for Oktoberfest, but it’s so much more than beer and pretzels. Luckily, the yearly event should occur again on October 16, 2027, but be sure to check the official website before making travel plans. Perhaps I’ll see you next year.

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Victoria Erickson

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• TRAVEL DIARY: The Long Night of Museums (Munich) - October 19, 2026