Bayreuth Festival - Die Walkure

Published Friday 29 August 2008 at 17:05 by Penelope Turing

Frank Philipp Schlossmann’s sets for this Tankred Dorst production Ring are most effective in Walkure.

For the first act Hunding’s hut is a spacious, perhaps shabby manor house. The second act is not so very inspiring, merely rocky, but the last act, the courtyard of a ruined fortress is immensely effective.

Thielemann’s conducting again creates the opera’s unique mystery, through love and the hope of spring to disaster and pain. The first scene between Sieglinde, Siegmund and Hunding is really dramatic with Eva-Maria Westbroek’s vividly sung Sieglinde, Kwangchul Youn’s fine Hunding and Endrik Wottrich’s Seigmund now dramatically developed.

One of the most exciting experiences at this performance was the full development of Albert Dohmen’s Wotan since last year. Now he gives real meaning and interest to Wotan’s long narration in Act II, and both his singing and acting are deeply moving in the final scene with Brunnhilde - Wotan’s farewell. Linda Watson is not an ideal Brunnhilde, but she sings and acts effectively.

In general Bernd Skodzig’s costumes are excellent - timeless in the traditional Ring manner, but of course there are exceptions. The eight valkyries in their scarlet costumes weaving their way to and fro in the ruined fortress at the beginning of Act III make a splendidly exciting scene, but the red tunic-cum-dress is not helpful to Brunnhilde. Nor is the tight black costume and large black headdress good for Martina Dike’s Fricka.

But the wholeness of music, performance and human joy and suffering leaves the audience deeply moved and passionately enthusiastic.