“Götterdämmerung” as profoundly human family drama staged by Victor Schwarz
By Oxana Arkaeva
Attended performace on August 26th, 2023
Production pictures by Enrico Nawrath / Bayreuth Festival
Initiated by Richard Wagner, Bayreuth Festival premised in 1876, featuring the debut performance of “Götterdämmerung” – the fourth and final opera in Richard Wagner’s epic cycle of music dramas. Wagner composed “Götterdämmerung” between 1870 and 1874, drawing his plot inspiration from various mythological sources. Primarily the Northern Sagas and the Nibelungenlied. The plot revolves around the downfall of the gods and marks the conclusion of the conflicts set in motion by events in the previous operas. Musically and dramaturgically, the Ring Cycle is known for its complex characters, elaborate themes, and Wagner’s innovative use of leitmotifs.
The plot centers on Hagen’s desire, Alberich’s son and Gunther’s half-brother, to claim the ring. Gunther, the Gibichung king, wishes to marry Brünnhilde but needs Siegfried’s help since she’s now his wife. Siegfried drinks a memory-erasing potion, and they pledge blood brotherhood. Act one ends with a grand wedding procession for Siegfried and Gutrune, Gunther’s sister. In act two, Hagen manipulates Siegfried to win Brünnhilde for Gunther using a disguise. Afterward, Hagen and Gunther plot Siegfried’s murder. The act concludes with Gunther (disguised as Siegfried) and Brünnhilde heading to the Gibichung Hall, where Hagen reveals the plan, seizes the ring, and chaos brews. Act three sees Siegfried’s murder and Brünnhilde’s confrontation with Wotan. A funeral march follows, with Siegfried’s body taken away. In the final act, Gutrune mourns Siegfried, Hagen demands the ring, and Brünnhilde reveals the truth. Chaos reigns as various parties seek the ring. Brünnhilde takes control, returns the ring to the Rhein maidens, and sacrifices herself in Siegfried’s funeral pyre. The opera ends with the Rhine River flooding, consuming the ring and cleansing the world of its curse. Valhalla burns, marking the end of the gods and their world, possibly heralding a new era.
In all his works, Wagner employed what he termed “commemorative motifs” to mark characters, objects, emotions, and settings. These short, eloquent musical themes are highly adaptable melodically, rhythmically, and harmonically. They evolve and transform throughout the drama, creating a web of musical references. “The Bayreuth Orchestra, conducted by the young and extremely talented conductor Pietari Inkinen, acts in this production as an independent partner, but constantly assumes a leading role. It seems to lead its own life with demanding, suffering, longing, majestic and all-evolving, grand sound in the final immolation scene.”
Austrian stage director Victor Schwarz takes Wagner’s network of musical references to new heights. His “Ring” is akin to an opera series on Netflix, rooted in the Nibelungen family saga and dedicated to demystifying its characters. Schwarz doesn’t transport us to a prehistoric myth or a post-apocalyptic or post-human future but rather immerses us in a concrete, contemporary, profoundly human family drama populated by highly ambivalent characters. He strips away the symbolic significance of props like rings, spears, swords, horns, and camouflage helmets, revealing their insignificance and introducing new symbols. The camouflage helmet, for instance, becomes a baseball cap, while the cuboid of light with the pyramid, symbolizing the myth and Valhalla’s power. The Brünnhildes’s faithful horse, Grane, is an old house servant, and the much-desired ring – the symbol of power and the future is represented in a child of Siegfried and Brünnhilde.
“Götterdämmerung” begins with an extended prologue set in Sigmund and Sieglinde’s home, now inhabited by Brünnhilde, Siegfried, and their child. The child, asleep and dreaming, experiences mystical and ominous visions. Ghostly Norns (superbly sung by Evelin Novak, Stephanie Houtzeel, and Simone Schröder) with concealed faces and resplendent attire safeguard the child from the power-hungry Alberich (impressively portrayed by Olafur Sigurdarson). What initially concluded “Siegfried” with jubilant expressions of love has now turned into alienation, disappointment, and sorrow. Siegfried is on the brink of departing, embarking on a new life while leaving Brünnhilde alone with their child.
Schwarz’s character interpretations brilliantly demystify the gods. The nouveau riche Gibichung clan, residing in Valhalla, inhabits a decadent, glittering world, where self-delusion reigns supreme. Hagen (a remarkably sung and performed role by Mika Kares) appears to be the sole exception, yet he harbors a vengeful desire against his former friend Siegfried.
The brass knuckles he continually brandishes are the same that killed Fafner. Gutrune (possessing a beautiful voice but with some challenges in text comprehension, portrayed by Aile Asszonyi) exudes an air of flamboyance akin to a prostitute. Her brother Gunther (superbly sung and performed by Markus Eiche) is a caricature of a man, fueled by cocaine, wearing a rhinestone T-shirt reading “Who the Fuck is Grane.”
Siegfried (Andreas Schrager, a true helden tenor with exceptional text comprehension and high notes) remains oblivious to his past and origins, indifferent to the future, and firmly anchored in the present. Consequently, the forgetfulness potion becomes a meaningless prop. Sexually frustrated and already smitten with Gutrune, Siegfried pours the sticky green liquid over Grane’s head, whom Hagen subsequently takes away and kills. Brünnhilde (Catherine Foster, endowed with a powerful voice, broad sound, text comprehension challenges, and tremendous effort) ultimately becomes an unhappy single mother, striving to protect her child. She becomes a victim of the entire narrative, ruthlessly betrayed and brutally offended by Siegfried. She is the one who relinquishes her child, the ring, in the end, and meets her demise alongside Siegfried, lying beside her deceased husband and cradling Grane’s decapitated head.
Accompanied by majestic orchestra in the Immolation scene Valhalla and the gods, the failed divine family, crumble under cold neon light (impressive stage design by Andrea Conti). Wotan commits suicide and his body hangs from the ceiling. In the end, however, we return to the origin of it all—the womb. Within the uterus, two fetuses now clasp each other tightly, as seen in a touching video by Luis August Krawen. Despite all the turmoil, there’s a profound sense of hope for salvation through love supported by long-lasting enthusiastic applause of grateful audience.
Production team and cast:
Conductor – Pietari Inkinen
Stage direction – Valentin Schwarz
Stage – Andrea Cozzi
Costumes – Andy Besuch
Lighting after – Reinhard Traub
Lighting revival 2023 – Nicol Hungsberg
Video – Luis August Krawen
Choir direction – Eberhard Friedrich
dramaturgy – Konrad Kuhn
Soloists
Siegfried – Andreas Schager
Gunther – Markus Eiche
Alberich – Ólafur Sigurdarson
Hagen – Mika Kares
Brünnhilde – Catherine Foster
Gutrune – Aile Asszonyi
Waltraute – Christa Mayer
1st Norn – Okka von der Damerau
2nd Norn – Claire Barnett-Jones
3rd Norn – Kelly God
Woglinde – Evelin Novak
Wellgunde – Stephanie Houtzeel
Floßhilde – Simone Schröder
Grane – Igor Schwab
Festival choir and orchestra
Singers, Staging, Orchestra 