At 8p.m, at the Teatro alla Scala:

                The rhinegold, R. Wagner

Orchestra and choir of the Teatro alla Scala

Christian Thielemann            Conductor

David McVicar                        Staging

Michael Volle                          Wotan

Andrè Schuen                         Donner

Norbert Ernst                          Loge

Johannes M. Kränzle             Alberich

Wolfgang A-Sperrhacke        Mime

Jongmin Park                          Fasolt

Ain Anger                                 Fafner

Okka von der Damerau          Fricka

Olga Bezsmertna                      Freia

Of the four works that make up the Tetralogy, The Rhinegold is certainly the one that comes closest to the tale. Here we are in the world of the Germanic gods and myths. Composed in 1854, the opera’s style has nothing in common with that of Twilight of the Gods, written 20 years later. And yet there are so many sublime scenes, from the Prelude in E flat major symbolizing the Rhine, to the scene in the forge or the entry of the Gods into Walhalla!

For this first part of the Tetralogy (Siegfried, Valkyrie and Twilight of the Gods will follow in the coming seasons), La Scala has called on the excellent British director David McVicar. Acclaimed by the greatest theatres, McVicar knows how to combine the intimate and the spectacular, tradition and novelty, respect for the text and the unexpected, creating a most pleasing blend. Christian Thielemann, an undisputed star conductor, is undoubtedly one of the greatest Wagnerians of our time. The cast under his direction is largely made up of singers well-versed in the Wagnerian tradition, notably Michael Volle as Wotan and Okka von der Damerau as Fricka. A Wagner opera at the Teatro alla Scala – what a promising pairing!