Die Götterdämmerung - a review

Seattle Opera's production of The Ring Cycle came to an end last night with their performance of Die Götterdammerung. There are two further cycles to come. The next begins on August 17. Last night brought drama of its own, and incredibly none was provided by the appearance of a live horse being led across the stage. Unlike the bear and the dragon on previous nights, Brünnhilde's horse Grane was played by a real member of the animal kingdom.

They say, don't work with children and animals, but as reliable as Grane was, it was technology that proved to be unreliable last night. The raising of the curtain had to be delayed twice, presumably because the set wasn't ready, although the orchestra had finished its intro. The gap between the two was over a minute on one occasion and clearly unsettled the audience.

Like on opening night, part four began with three women on stage. On this occasion Luretta Bybee, Stephanie Blythe and Margaret Jane Wray who had previously appeared in the roles of Waltraute (in the Walküre), Fricka and Siegelinde. As a recap of the story line of the last three nights, this prologue was useful, although it is hard to imagine many of the afficionados in the hall last night needed to have the story retold to them.

In Das Rheingold, Gordon Hawkins played the lesser role of Donner. Last night he was given the chance to shine as the insecure and slightly gullible Gunther, who had inherited power in the kingdom by dint of being the son of Gibich. He shared however the mother of his half-brother, the scheming Hagen, who was sung by Daniel Sumegi, the giant Fafner in Das Rheingold.

Hagen's misfortune was not to have Gibich as his father, but the dwarf Alberich (Richard Paul Fink), who had wooed and enthralled the crowd on opening night. In this enlarged role as the evil and embittered Hagen, Sumegi shone and dominated the stage in Act One. In my opinion, he was the closest we came throughout the cycle to a bona fide baddie. He was so good I could swear people wanted to boo the character as much as applaud the performer at the close, which is the hallmark of a convincing and fantastic performance in this kinf of role. Doubtless, it's not the done thing at the Ring Cycle though.

Stig Andersen looked a little healthier than he had on Wednesday in the role of Siegfried. Yet I am not convinced the audience were totally smitten by Andersen. I appreciate it is somewhat cliched to judge audience reaction by the vehemence of their applause, but I would have expected something louder for the debutant Andersen had the audience been truly wooed.

The same could also be said of Janice Baird as Brünnhilde. I thought she had a much better night than she had on Siegfried. Like Stig Andersen (Siegfried), massive volume is not part of her style and there will always be those who prioritise overpowering the orchestra more than other aspects, such as clarity of diction and acting skills.

I am not in that camp, but those who are will have been disappointed, especially after the somewhat enthusiastic hype given to her performance in the pre-publicity by the company. Perhaps too much pressure was put on Stig Andersen (Siegfried) and Janice than was necessary by the over promotion of them in advance publicity. That said, Janice Baird was well on her game tonight and I also couldn't help but wonder if she suffers from some prejudice given her slender figure, in a role usually associated with more voluptuous ladies. She certainly gave every sinew in this performance and it was a delight to hear the applause of so many fans warmly given at the end of the night for Ms. Baird.

One scene that was done particularly well was the calling of the troops. Over sixty armoured men thronged the stage to be called to action by Hagen (picture above). The production hit this coconut perfectly. The singers sang in unison with the timing you would expect from the military. I only wish I was mature enough not to have briefly thought of Monty Python during this scene. Plaudits most go to Sumegi's Hagen for dominating such a packed stage, but also to the choreographry. The audience lapped this one up.

If anything, Andersen was at his best just before Siegfried got killed. His interaction with the three Rhein maidens, Jennifer Hines (Flosshilde), Julianne Gearhart (Woglinde), and Michèle Losier (Wellgunde), was superbly acted, showing that Anderson is a talent who can act and sing at the same time with equal panache. I have to say that, remove the issue of volume and Stig Andersen is an incredible presence on an opera stage. I hope to see him again soon.

I have now experienced my first Ring. I will admit it feels more like a rite of passage than the Baton March as one of my sympathetic soccer buddies likened it. In fact I saw several Sounders regulars at the opera which suggests that pre-conceived stereotypes may not be as clearly defined as the more simplistic explanations may try to. I am delighted I did it, and althoug h I would not recommend it as an introduction to opera for an newbies, it contributed greatly to my understanding of the aura that surrounds the subject.

Finally I'd like to thank my fellow opera critics whose insight made this a far more pleasurable experience for this Ring virgin than it would have been.  I'd go again - not as early as August the 17th when Seattle Opera raises its curtain to do this all over again.

1. Jennifer Hines (Flosshilde), Julianne Gearhart (Woglinde), and Michèle Losier (Wellgunde).

2. .Daniel Sumegi (Hagen) with actors and members of the Seattle Opera chorus.( both Rozarii Lynch)