For the first time on the big screen Richard Wagner's monumental Ring Cycle.
St James Cavalier is proud to present the Metropolitan Opera production of Robert Lepage’s re-imagining of Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen, as well as Wagner’s Dream, a new documentary chronicling the creation of this ambitious new staging.
Malta joins many other countries which will see for teh first tiem a complete screening of this monumental work. These include Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Chile, Colombia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Spain, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.
The Metropolitan Opera’s new production of Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen features a cast of today’s greatest Wagnerian singers, led by Bryn Terfel (Wotan), Deborah Voigt (Brünnhilde), Jay Hunter Morris (Siegfried), and Jonas Kaufmann (Siegmund). The four-opera epic is directed by Robert Lepage and conducted by Met Music Director James Levine and the company’s Principal Conductor Fabio Luisi. The production premiered at the Met over the course of the 2010–11 and 2011–12 seasons.
German composer Richard Wagner (1813–1883) was one of the most influential figures of 19th-century music. His idea of the Gesamtkunstwerk, or “total work of art,” combining music, theater, literature, architecture, and other disciplines, has had an impact far beyond the world of opera. The Ring cycle is his masterpiece and took an astounding 26 years to complete. Its story is loosely based on the medieval Icelandic Edda epics and the German Nibelungenlied. The protagonists—Wotan, the king of the gods, his warrior daughter Brünnhilde, and the hero Siegfried—are caught up in the struggle over a magical ring that gives unlimited power.
Tickets are €7 (€5 concessions) for the documentary Wagner's Dream and €15 (€10 concessions) for each of the operas. Alternatively see all five for just €50 (€35 concessions)
NB if opting for the Block booking please follow these instructions:
1. Select the performance 2. Select your seat 3. Use the pull down menu to choose the block booking price (marked 'normal block' or 'concessionary block') 4. Press 'cart' 5. Repeat the procedure for the documentary and all four operas 6. Proceed to check out 7. You should see 5 tickets. The total should read €50 for normal pricing or €35 for concessionary prices. Please make sure that you have selected all five performances. Block booking is not available for multiple bookings of the same performance. 8. Concessionary prices are available to students, unemployed, senior citizens, people with special needs and their assistant. You may be asked for proof of eligability.
Programme
June 27 at 8 pm Wagner’s Dream A documentary by Susan Froemke Running time: 1 hour, 55 minutes Premiere
“Rising well above the typical making-of feature, the doc will fascinate buffs when shown alongside the operas themselves.”—Hollywood Reporter
The stakes could not be higher as visionary director Robert Lepage and the Metropolitan Opera tackle Wagner's Ring cycle. A backstage look at the enormous theatrical and musical challenges of staging opera’s most monumental work, the film chronicles the five-year journey to create the most ambitious staging in Met history, featuring a 90,000-pound set nicknamed "The Machine.” Soprano Deborah Voigt is torn between excitement and fear as she prepares to take on the role of Brünnhilde for the first time, while unexpected drama arises as a new tenor, Jay Hunter Morris, steps in as the Ring’s hero, Siegfried – days before the production's world premiere.
Tickets €7 (Concessions €5)
July 4 at 6.30 pm Das Rheingold (The Rhine Gold) Running time: 184 minutes; no intermission Original live transmission: October 9, 2010
In the first opera in the Ring cycle, the evil Alberich steals the gold from the Rhinemaidens and creates an all-powerful ring. Wotan, the ruler of the gods, uses magic to seize the ring to pay for his new palace, Valhalla. Alberich places a curse on the ring and anyone who wears it.
Tickets €15 (Concessions €10)
July 5 at 6.00 pm Die Walküre (The Valkyrie) Running time: 323 minutes, including 2 intermission Original live transmission: May 14, 2011
The mysterious hero Siegmund finds shelter in the strangely familiar arms of a lonely woman named Sieglinde. Their forbidden love leads Wotan’s daughter, the warrior maiden Brünnhilde, to defy morality and intervene on behalf of Siegmund. As punishment, Wotan strips away Brünnhilde’s immortality and places her in a lasting sleep, surrounded by fire.
Tickets €15 (Concessions €10)
July 7 at 6.30 pm Siegfried Running time: 258, including one intermission Original live transmission: November 5, 2011
The young hero Siegfried, who grows up in the wilderness, forges the magic sword and captures the ring. To fulfill his destiny, he must overcome one more opponent—Wotan, now disguised as the Wanderer, and cross through the magic fire to awaken his true love, Brünnhilde.
Tickets €15 (Concessions €10)
July 8 at 5 pm Götterdämmerung (Twilight of the Gods) Running time: 297 minutes, including one intermission Original live transmission: February 11, 2012
In Götterdämmerung, Siegfried’s unwitting betrayal of Brünnhilde leads to his death. Heartbroken, Brünnhilde returns the ring to the Rhinemaidens and throws herself into Siegfried’s funeral pyre, causing a global cataclysm and ending the reign of the gods.
