Die Walküre

I'd gotten burned out a few years ago from over-subscribing to opera in the Family Circle at the Met, but I ended up accepting a ticket this afternoon (Good Friday) to see the season premiere - and new production premiere - of Die Walküre.

I got to Lincoln Center much more quickly than I expected, so I wandered around the entire Lincoln Center complex for half an hour admiring the lines of all the buildings in the beautiful soft pre-twilight of a bright but cloudy day. I finished with the north side, on the stairs across from Alice Tully Hall. I waited for a few folks to finish climbing the stairs so I could move over to my desired vantage point, where I could take in the wonderful angled roofs next to me (the Lincoln restaurant) and across the street (the at65 Cafe). A security guard came over to find out what I found so fascinating. I showed him. He was skeptical for a moment, then he said, "Wow, that is really fun!" (Needless to say, all this slow walking and admiration for the sculptures, architecture, reflecting pool, etc. took place to a nice soundtrack on my iPod. What a luxury!)

This was my second time seeing Die Walküre, and I liked this production (by Robert Lepage) much better than the previous one (by Otto Schenk). Admittedly, I'd only seen it in its final season (i.e., in its 20-somethingth year!), which also happened to coincide with my opera-burn-out season. But my friends agreed they preferred this production as well. It somehow captured our imaginations better, and seemed far more alive and lively... even though we still did get the feeling that people were singing for a very long time about things that were very simple and obvious (e.g., Siegmund needs a weapon, and the sword in the tree is right in front of him, but the two love-bird siblings spell things out in excruciating detail before connecting the dots).*

The set was phenomenal - long panels with video screens that rotated and separated to become a forest for the actors to wander through... or war horses for the Valkyries... or stayed together in a giant seamless screen in various formations (rocks with lava, a mountain top with snow or a ring of fire, etc., etc.)

But also the music was thrilling this time. Absolutely loved Jonas Kaufmann as Siegmund, and Deborah Voight as Brünnhilde. (The singer playing Sieglinde did a bang-up job in Act I although she was apparently under the weather - but she had to bow out for the remainder of the piece.) The relationships between Siegmund and Sieglinde, and between Brünnhilde and Wotan, were quickly established, both compelling and believable in the context of the opera.

I'd been kidding around with a friend who'd wished me a "happy Good Friday" that happiness is not one of the emotions ordinarily associated with the day - and that that was why my decision to attend part of the Wagner Ring Cycle (rather than a Good Friday service) was theologically appropriate. But the production was really good, and I'm so glad I got to be a part of it.




FN* Speaking of which, we had some ideas for adjusting the opera to meet the needs and interests of modern audiences. We concluded the entire story could easily be told in an hour or less, although it might be necessary to cut some of the singing. My friend Patricia also has plans to provide much-needed moral uplift by (among other things) removing the incest and splicing on a happy ending. I don't want to say any more at present, because these plans are obviously very much under wraps and we don't want anyone swiping 'em! Producers and directors will doubtless be knocking down our doors any moment now, but you saw it here first, folks!