In 1962, Hermann Nitsch locked himself in a basement with two assistants. He crucified a lamb, then proceeded to stage his own crucifixion while one assistant poured animal blood over him, staining the background sheet to produce a "relic." But this wasn't a cultic ritual, this was an exhibition called Blood Organ, and it was just the precursor to performances which have reached festival proportions. His Das Orgien Mysterien Theater is a full-on bacchanalia of music, blood, wine and drama with all senses operating at once. Raw flesh meets naked revelers as Nitsch sprays blood over the audience, implicating them in the deaths of the bulls, sheep, pigs and other animals, and aiming to damn the mechanisms of repression in our affluent society. As he explains:

"A psychoanalytically-oriented dramaturgy allows the Dionysian to burst forth from within us. Suppressed areas of inner impulses are made visible. The actions with flesh, blood and slaughtered animals plumb the collective areas of our unconscious minds. The paramount aim and purpose of the festival is a profound affirmation of our existence, our life and our creation. The mysticism of being leads to a permanent festival of life."