Fri, 04/06/2007 - 9:22pm

Its always a treat to see Plácido Domingo. You can imagine my disappointment then when an announcement was made prior to the beginning of the Washington National Opera’s performance of Richard Wagner’s Die Walküre, that Mr. Domingo was feeling a bit under the weather, and that, although he intended to still perform, he was apologizing in advance for a less than stellar performance. I couldn’t thereafter discern if Mr. Domingo had popped an airborne before curtain call and suddenly, within the ten minutes it took him to get on stage, had a resurgence of health and vibrancy, or if the earlier announcement was a prank because as it were, Plácido Domingo sounded typically phenomenal. In the lead role of Siegmund, Plácido’s benevolent voice dominated the music and played nicely with fellow powerhouse Anja Kampe who sang in the role of Siegmund’s long lost twin sister and eventual lover, Sieglinde. These two shinned for most of the show, but credit is also due to Alan Held and Linda Watson who played Wonton and Brünnhilde as they too held their own and brought ease to an opera which, for anyone familiar with the operas of Wagner’s Ring Cycle, are dense, long and often laborious. Not to say the show wasn’t at every moment entertaining and outstanding but this was due to the hardworking singers who allowed for the audience members to enjoy the music of one of the greatest operas ever written.

I had read before seeing the opera that the director wanted to put the story in a “modern” context. This was something that the WNO had done for the first installment in the series, Das Rheingold and I had at the time found it slightly offensive in regards to the justification that it was done to help American audiences understand better the meaning of the opera. This meant turning the setting of the opera into an F. Scott Fitzgerald novel which wasn’t terrible, however I had certainly hoped that the WNO would have considered that in as a sophisticated city as Washington, DC, audience members at the opera were not only already familiar with the music, but aware of the story! (let me also mention that Das Rheingold was, as Die Walküre is, subtitled in English) I learned that for the second installment of the ring series, a “modern” context meant turning Wotan’s role as ruler of the Gods into some sort of business tycoon a-la 1937, making Brünnhilde his military first in command, and casting the Valkyries as a WWII special ops unit from the Air Force. I can only hope that by the fourth and final of the series, we will be blessed with the vision of Plácido Domingo singing among a see of operatic go-go dancers. But I admit however that I am mocking too much, the artistic sensibilities of the director. I did overall think that the staging and context of the Die Walküre was tastefully and artfully done. The truth of the matter is that regardless of what direction the WNO could have taken, the music, the symphony directed by Heinz Fricke and the singing of an all-star cast would shine through. For any enthused by the ring cycle or by Richard Wagner, this is certainly an opera worth seeing, and for anyone who has never been to the opera, this may be a good one to begin a life long love affair with Wagner’s ring cycle.

Die Walküre, performed in German with English subtitles is showing at the Kennedy Center on the following days: April 5, 2007 at 6:00 PM, April 9, 2007 at 6:00 PM, April 14, 2007 at 6:00 PM, April 17, 2007 at 6:00 PM
Tickets can be purchase online at www.dc-opera.org/ourseason/diewalkure.asp

About the author
Yasmin Tasan has been living in Washington, DC since 2001. She studied art history in college and is committed to furthering her understanding of fine art through the exploration of the many unique and interesting shows and exhibits Washington continually offers. When not roaming the halls of a museum you can most likely find her exploring a new or favorite restaurant with friends, running in Rock Creek Park or making a fool of herself at Bikram yoga.

Categories:

• Arts
• Music
• Theater and Cinema