Shitty staging. All po-mo rafters / beams falling / scaffolding crap. Lots of rocks. Everyone dressed in grey rags. All singers old and overweight, despite casting calling for nubile, sexy youths to play Siegmung and Sieglinde. Voices ho-hum. Acoustics in Hummingbird Centre extremely ho-hum.
Stay home and listen to a recording while reading Books 1 & 2 of P. Craig Russell's "Ring of the Niebelung" graphic novels. It'll be a much more enriching experience, I guarantee.
The synopsis in the program made total sense, but the story the surtitles told totally confused me.
He's a god, and only a man who's independent can save the gods, and his son loves him, but he's taught his son to hate the gods, so he'll be independent?
I can't agree they were old and overweight - these are some of the youngest and sveltest people singing this rep - hell, any rep. They're all at the beginning of Wagnerian careers; Adrienne Pieczonka's probably about a size 12. Is that overweight now?
I'll grant the costumes were dull and the stage was dark. But considering that I've always hated Wagner and actually enjoyed this show I don't think it was THAT bad... certainly not the fault of the singers where it failed.
Jeepers. Ho-hum voices? Old overweight singers? Can you link me to some actual human beings you've seen live who could sing Wagner that well in a less-than perfect acoustic space, and who look like the 90210 cast you've envisioned?
One word: ASS
Date: 2004-04-15 08:44 pm (UTC)Stay home and listen to a recording while reading Books 1 & 2 of P. Craig Russell's "Ring of the Niebelung" graphic novels. It'll be a much more enriching experience, I guarantee.
Re: One word: ASS
Date: 2004-04-16 06:25 am (UTC)I was personally really confused with Wotan's "exposition" during Act 2. Either the surtitles were really fucked up, or this story makes so sense!!
Re: One word: ASS
Date: 2004-04-16 07:24 am (UTC)Re: One word: ASS
Date: 2004-04-16 11:12 am (UTC)He's a god, and only a man who's independent can save the gods, and his son loves him, but he's taught his son to hate the gods, so he'll be independent?
Wha??
Re: One word: ASS
Date: 2004-04-16 11:16 am (UTC)Perhaps it makes sense if you're a Norse mythology buff, or indeed a Norse myth.
Re: One word: ASS
Date: 2004-04-16 11:20 am (UTC)Re: One word: ASS
Date: 2004-04-16 07:17 am (UTC)I can't agree they were old and overweight - these are some of the youngest and sveltest people singing this rep - hell, any rep. They're all at the beginning of Wagnerian careers; Adrienne Pieczonka's probably about a size 12. Is that overweight now?
I'll grant the costumes were dull and the stage was dark. But considering that I've always hated Wagner and actually enjoyed this show I don't think it was THAT bad... certainly not the fault of the singers where it failed.
Re: One word: ASS
Date: 2004-04-16 10:14 am (UTC)