Gotterdammerung ends Mariinsky Ring

 Götterdämmerung - Mariinsky Opera - Royal Opera House, 1 August 2009

 

And so the Mariinsky Opera's Ring Cycle draws to an end with - a mouldy angel? a novelty d1ldo? a foetus doing pressups? After 16 hours I shared the don't know don't care mood of most of the cast. The staging, by now familiar, consisted of adjusting the pewp-thingies into various inexplicable positions beneath random disco lights. At least the Tarnhelm had mutated from the first night's hankie into a proper helmet.

The only scene that worked, theatrically speaking, was the first part of Act 1, and even that was entirely down to a couple of splendid performances.

Mikhail Petrenko was simply the best Hagen I have ever seen. It's debatable whether he has the right voice for the part - firm and commanding, it's nevertheless on the light side, more golden syrup than black molasses. But he brings a devious, manipulative intelligence to the role. It's a fresh interpretation that nests with the sinuous music in a way that makes the traditional low-browed thug approach look not only outdated, but wrong. And he does it all in strapless ballgown and baldy wig. Just brilliant.

Evgeny Nikitin's cretinous, cowardly Gunther was equally compelling. He was far more animated than in his earlier appearances as Wotan, and the part seems to suit him better vocally at the moment too. The Egyptian temple set and costuming worked well, and with these two sparring together, for the first time in four days I felt I was watching a properly-rehearsed professional production. And it doesn't hurt that both sung their parts accurately and musically, without resort to bluster.  Elena Nebera's Gutrune was anonymous in comparison, though mostly cleanly sung.

The Siegfried du jour wasn't a patch on the previous evening's. Debatably the better singer of the two, Viktor Lutsyuk's voice has a nasal edge that penetrates any number of orchestral decibels. But his vibrato made it hard to tell what note he was aiming at, and he often resorted to shouting. Without the acting chops or gung-ho charisma of Leonid Zakhozhaev, it was hard to warm to him. In his favour, he did die more credibly than anyone else in the whole cycle.

Olga Savova made a better Waltraute than Walküre Brünnhilde, though I wasn't sure why she sported the same shaggy poncho Wotan had worn the previous night.

Larisa Gogolevskaya seemed at first as if she would prove the best of the three Brünnhildes in the cycle. Her Mrs Tiggywinkle proportions clad in a shapeless black caftan instead of the S&M costume sported by her colleagues, and without much in the way of vocal or physical expressivity, she nevertheless held a firm, steady line in an appealing lyric soprano. Until the end of the first act, that is, when her voice suddenly hoarsened. She struggled through, but it seemed as if she was about to lose it completely. Whatever she took in the interval helped her through to the end of the opera, though she completely missed her third act cue, and limped through the most uneventful immolation imaginable - no horse, no flames, no Rhine, and oddly, no Hagen either.

Gergiev hardly went out in a blaze of glory either. The prologue and first act were promising, but he began the second at a funereal pace that never picked up. There were some nice details here and there, but it was hard to engage with an interpretation so stop-start. I guess economics dictate the touring of operas that sell rather than operas he has a passion and flair for (meaning the Russian repertoire) but I can't help thinking a bit more rehearsal might have rescued this from the realms of the slapdash.

Nikolai Putilin as Alberich reviews the production:

 

*********  more photos on next page  *********

David Lee Roth after 30 years on the road Viktor Lutsyuk as Siegfried:

 

teh Norns:

 

teh Rhineladies:

 

Mikhail Petrenko as Hagen:

 

Elena Nebera as Gutrune:

 

Evgeny Nikitin as Gunther. Check out the tattooed hands:

 

Olga Savova as Waltraute:

 

Larisa Gogolevskaya as Brünnhilde:

 

 

 

 

 

A rare smile from Maestro Gergiev:

 

 

 More Mikhail Petrenko:

 

Partial standing ovation - or are they just rushing for the exits?

 

All photos by intermezzo.typepad.com - please credit if you use them

Comments

[Not For Fun Only]

Kudos for making it through this singular Ring experience. I saw this production in 2006 when it visited Orange County (itself a very unlikely Ring location).

Judging from your report, I would say that several years on the road have not smoothed out this production. I recall that many humorous comments were bandied about regarding the costumes & scenery. I don't think that a production team was even credited back then, & it appears that matters of staging have not improved.

At that time I thought the clearly overworked Mariinsky Theater Orchestra played incredibly well. I was often put off balance by the decidedly Russian style of singing & diction. I was also shocked to discover that the part of Siegfried could actually be made dramatically convincing. The current performances in London seem to evoke that same mishmash of responses I had in 2006.

[Tristan Vieira]

Ms Intermezzo has elegantly avoided the use of all the nasty adjectives this production most emphatically warranted. She also seemed exceedingly generous in some of her accounts.

There is no one to blame for this disaster except Mr Gergiev. He is the one who should be ashamed to think what he presented in London in any way did the Mariinsky proud.

The audience reception only proves how undiscerning even an alleged musically-intelligent audience can be.

I am glad it is over.

If only I could sue for damages!

Tristan, London

[dolcevita]

I wish I was wrong and sorry for you guys! I knew this Ring would be sloppy, but wouldn't imagine they would dare to come up with such a pile of crap :(

That being said, I'm glad I skipped the "piroshki"-Ring :-)

I'm with Intermezzo's re- Petrenko. I listened to his Hagen in Aix (check out the most recent YouTube entries with "Rattle Aix": only a bit of Petrenko tho. When I come back home I'll upload some excerpts from the same Gotterdammerung so that you could hear him in all his glory). I first kinda cringed, "Naah, this doesn't fit Hagen!", but then it is so compelling - you just have to give that man way. Too good and very refreshing!

Thanks again for the wonderful Intermezzo's updates and all of all of you guys too.

Cheers

[Mark Berry]

How glad I am to have stayed at home! It all sounds about on a par with 'Gergiev's Mahler', or perhaps worse... Strange how limited a musician Gergiev seems to be: I don't think I have ever heard him less than very good in Russian music, and I don't think I have ever heard him convince in anything else.

I was delighted, however, to hear about Petrenko's Hagen. In the *very* different (non-)production at Aix, he was outstanding too: quite different, as you say, from the typical reading, but utterly convincing - and making one wonder whether the others might have had it wrong all these years. He was also excellent as Hunding (Aix again), though I have only seen that on DVD.

[HairMan]

A spot on reading of the night and the production as a whole. I particularly like the Putilin photo caption shot!

Reading your thoughts regarding Petrenko's portrayal of Hagen has made me rethink my earlier statement - it would actually move the role away from being a pantomime bully to one of true cunning. It would be interesting to know what others think. I may even doff my cap towards the Mariinsky on this one...

And thank you for the audience shot (no - I'm not in it). But it brings to mind two final thoughts I have on this whole experience. I was amazed to hear cheering on most nights from the crowd - maybe they belonged to the same idiots who physically attacked some readers here - now I'm a fan of a certain soprano (with heavy links to the Mariinsky) but I'm not going to cheer if I've heard a bad performance or turn into Mike Tyson if I hear anyone booing or criticising a performance - so it would be nice if a bit of reality crept into the small minority of slavish fans.

The second, and I promise last thought on the whole production, is that it would be nice for VG to show a bit more respect towards the audience. Thanks to his fondness for a late entrance on two of the four nights I had to dash at the final curtain - something I have never done before and it made me uncomfortable doing so (even if I’m not wowed by performances I still like to applaud effort). I haven't got the musical nous to point out VG’s musical failings during this run, but during the past year I've experienced a few big name conductors - Pappano, Dudamel, Mackerras, Armiliato to know that VG stands out from the crowd with his timekeeping and in doing so he has lost my respect somewhat. He may have a fiery temper and all that, but when I'm seeing people of mainly older ages with not grand eye sight, or sprinting speed, wheezing over the cobblestones at CG in the dark it makes me think that too much leeway has been given to Gergiev and that he needs a reality check of his own. As the saying goes (or at least I think it does) "Respect is a two way street" – the question is, does the Mariinsky have a traffic warden?

[John]

Thanks, Hairman. You accurately describe me in your second para, stumbling over the cobblestones in the rain!

I complained to the Front of House Manager after the Walkure overrun, but they were as exasperated by the Mariinsky timings as anyone. But why get us all in our seats and then be kept waiting for another 10-15 mins for Maestro Gergiev to get to the podium. Perhaps he was giving some last minute and much needed coaching.

The classic was the Brunnhild arriving late for the beginning of the Immolation. I really thought Gergiev would have to stop the performance, as he slowed right down and marked time.

There is no reason for Hagen to be a heavy bully as he works by slyness and cunning. After all his imminent birth is announced by Wotan in Act 2 of Walkure, so he should be no older than Siegfried. His mother Grimhild sounds quite a gal.

[William Stockler]

Intermezzo largely mirrors my own views. I would however have given a special mention to the orchestra, particularly at certain moments, such as the horns in the transition between the two scenes of Act 2 and Siegfried's funeral march, which was shattering.

My impression of the "production" was that the producer had given up by the end of Act 1. No effort was made at all to explain the complicated position in Act 2, the Rhinemaiden scene seemed to forget that they were the same maidens who were swimming in "Rheingold", there was no Siegfried in the cask when Hagen tried to snatch the ring from his finger, and the immolation scene was effectively a concert performance, with no ring going back to the Rhinemaidens at the end.

The orchestra made up for all of this. I simply had to shut my eyes to enjoy it.

[Jezabel]

Petrenko's Hagen was definitely the best thing of the whole escapade - I was shocked to find at the end of Act One I actually sympathised with Hagen and understood his resentment - for the first time ever! But for the record, I would like to correct a previous correspondent, as Hagen did (attempt to) sing the final line of "Zuruck vom Ring", wherever he was in the fiasco of the Immolation (I couldn't see him as I was sitting high up close to the stage but did hear the line!).

[Roberto Cacciaglia]

Oh, I was in the Amphi and probably I didn't hear him.
Also, I was probably so swayed by Brünnihilde missing her lines that I thought he was quite put off at the end and had decided to give up... :-)
Thank you Jezabel for rectifying this.

[Doundou Tchil]

Fabulous writing, Intermezzo, I've been passing this on. There was so much money hanging on the "success" of the Mahler cycle that some smelly things happened, but this time, it's been nipped in the bud.

[Suzanna Livingstone]

It appears that the hold up for Valkyrie and the overrun was not Gergiev but allegedly Prince Charles and his entourage, according to ROH staff, who turned up, as did the Duke of Kent and the Archbishop of St George's Catholic Cathedral in Southwark.

Goetterdaemmerung totally over run by an hour.

[Elaine]

I had tickets for this but bailed out and managed to sell them. Judging by what I have heard and read I made a wise judgement. My daughter and son in law went and they thought it was appalling. daughter fell asleep halfway through gotterdemerung and son in law was so incensed he booed at the end which he never does but felt so strongly that he needed to let them know what he thought.