The Rhinegold @ENO 2023
The Rhinegold is the first of four music dramas that constitutes Richard Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen. Although it was the first of the dramas to be set to music, completed in 1854, it was the last opera to receive Wagner’s written texts. Its 1869 premiere was held in Munich, but it was not until 1876 that it received its Ring Cycle premiere at the inaugural Bayreuth Festival, conducted by Hans Richter.
It recounts Alberich’s theft of the Rhine gold after his renunciation of love. He fashioned the all-powerful ring from the gold and enslaves the Nibelungs. Wotan with the help of Loge seizes the gold and the ring to pay his debts to the giants who have built the gods fortress, Valhalla. Alberich curses the ring and its possessor and with Erda warning Wotan to forsake the ring, he gives it to the giants who fight over it with Fasolt being killed. The gods entered their fortress of Valhalla in the shadow of their impending doom.
There have been many extremely wacky productions of this opera. Harry Kupfer’s 1988 grim interpretation with the gods represented as gangsters in mafioso sunglasses, together with August Everding’s production where the Rhinemaidens were attached to elasticated ropes, comes to mind. It was not until Keith Warner’s 2004 production for Covent Garden, that the opera was portrayed in a slightly more modern traditional manner.
Richard Jones’s production for ENO can be regarded as masterfully edgy, traditionally modern but not one of those self-aggrandised productions. Jones allows us to gorge on a Wagner interpretation of this opera with unflattering gods, gym kit and running kit for the Rhinemaidens and the Nibelungs and it is very much back to basics in his visionary interpretation. The Gold starts life as a golden puppet child and in a thrilling finale the Rainbow Bridge becomes a sea of falling glitter, beautifully lit by Adam Silverman, the lighting designer.
Musically the evening starts nervously, missing some of the intricacies of Wagner’s score, but once the action settles down so does the music and Martin Brabbins, the conductor, gives us a full and warm interpretation of this work, particularly the beautiful finale.
All the principals worked hard on their diction, interpreting a new translation by the consummate Wagnerian John Deathridge.
Happily, ENO and Michelle Williams, the casting director, have put together a really great group of singers. The Rhine-daughters of Eleanor Dennis, Idunnu Münch and Katie Stevenson were all current or former ENO Harewood artists, as were the Nibelungs of Leigh Melrose and John Findon. Of particular note was Leigh Melrose’s Alberich. With not a huge voice at his disposal, the interpretation of the role was outstanding, although even more grist would be welcomed in his final curse. The Canadian bass baritone John Relyea was an intense deep Wotan, though we did miss the original Wotan of Matthew Rose. Wotan’s wife, Fricka was sung by the plush and fresh sounding Madeleine Shaw and her daughter Freia sung by the intense Katie Lowe who carried a constant worried brow that her future was to be taken by the giants. Froh was an adequate Julian Hubbard and Donner a full force unyielding Blake Denson. Erda was sung beautifully – as always – by Christine Rice and the outstanding giants were sung by the virile toned Simon Bailey and James Creswell. Loge was the outstanding American and ENO regular, Frederick Ballentine, who provided intellectual dramatic interpretation of this great role.
Two and a half hours of intense opera flew by quickly. If you like Wagner – particularly a short one – then rush for the limited tickets that are available in this mainly sold-out performances!
I hope that the disgraceful Arts Council are noting the outstanding nature of Opera being produced at The Coliseum at a time when the Sword of Damocles hangs over the English National Opera as a result of the Arts Council’s withdrawal of funding. I have already in other places confirmed that the Arts Council’s Chairman Sir Nicholas Serota is unfit for his position and should resign, but I add that the Chief Executive Darren Henley and his deputy Simon Mellor, who are both cringeworthy when it comes to their operatic knowledge, only show their political lusting for the current and past ministers of the Government’s Department for Culture. Shame on them.
David Buchler
