Image: Susan Bullock and Terje Stensvold at the conclusion of act three of Die Walküre Photo: Jeff Busby
In Opera Australia’s production of Das Rheingold, directed by Neil Armfield the magical and fantastic world of the gods was created simply but with range of references to popular theatre and variety entertainment. Moving into the second opera, Die Walküre, the simplicity is still there but now Armfield takes us deeper into Wagner’s epic for the tragedies brought about the curse of the Ring.
Having adulterously engendered a semi divine pair of children to overcome the destruction of the gods along with a bevy of warrior women to bring battle heroes to form an elite guard at his fortress, Wotan’s wife Fricka effectively kills their marriage and then intervenes further to kill his chosen one Siegmund.
The same spare but suggestive scenery opens the opera: a tiny, cramped hut suggests the oppressive relationship between Wotan’s earthly daughter Sieglinde and her captor/husband Hunding. No tree with the sword here. Instead Robert Cousins’s set plants it into the outer rim of the revolving stage where it is carefully rotated into centre stage to coincide with its musical cues.
Miram Gordon Stewart’s Sieglinde is a woman traumatised by past and present events. Her plaintive but powerful voice radiates with joy in the duets in the first act with Siegmund then pulsates with terror in the second act and her visions of his death. Even the exultant “O hehrstes Wunder” is a heart-breaking cry of desperate hope in her depiction. As Siegmund, Stuart Skelton’s heroic voice has such power, range of colours, virility and control of breath as to take one’s own breath away.
In Act two, a spiral ramp goes from the floor up the full height of the stage. The appearance of animals whenever we see into Wotan’s private space suggests he is preserving every species, like a Noah preparing for the oncoming deluge. The gods descend from high above and, as the ramp slowly revolves it suggests the long journey from the heavens to the earth. On this ramp we first encounter Susan Bullock’s tomboy Brünnhilde, hurling her famous ho-jo-tos from way above and to thrilling effect. With equally soft tones for her scenes with Terje Stensvold as Wotan this, and the final act, both illuminate the complex detail of the story and relationship between father and daughter.
The love between father and favourite daughter is tellingly acted with embraces and paternal kisses leading to the final act where their scene together builds to a shattering climax with Wotan breaking down in her arms in one of the most moving and powerfully acted and sung accounts of imaginable.
After the profoundly moving final scene between Wotan and Brünnhilde the opera wends with her being surrounded by real flame. At the end of Das Rheingold the stage was bathed in glow of the gold. Now the stage is bathed in the glow of flickering fire.
In her all too brief appearance as Jacqueline Dark sings with a regal tone berating her husband and vividly enunciating the text. Their relationship is also tellingly acted and crowned with her giving Wotan a magnificently vindictive kiss of triumph.
Jud Arthur as Hunding, revealing a sonorous deep bass also illuminated the words with frightening intensity while using a minimum of physical movement to create an imposing and threatening appearance.
The Valkyries descended from above on swings and wearing GI Jane costumes and loading the swings with corpses to be hoisted back to heaven. Their fiercest battle, however, was with the magnificent orchestra and its luxurious brass playing providing a richness of sound that makes these cycles the musical event of the decade.
Five stars
Further information and ticket availability available at: melbourneringcycle.com.au
