On the Green Hill - Jubilee for Bayreuth's first 'Ring' conductor - Young
Great excitement, jostling, and even a few standing ovations: The Bayreuth audience honors a historic moment with much applause. For the first time, a woman conducts at the Bayreuth Festival for Richard Wagner's megawork "Der Ring des Nibelungen". Simone Young made her debut with the first part, "Rheingold", with panache and was celebrated for her harmonious conducting.
With Young, Nathalie Stutzmann ("Tannhauser") and Oksana Lyniv ("Der fliegende Holländer"), there are more women than men at the podium in Bayreuth this year. This has never happened in the festival's history. Lyniv was the first woman ever, three years ago, to conduct an opera at the Bayreuth Festival.
Dislike for the "Netflix-Ring" takes a back seat
Amidst the excitement over the musical part of "Rheingold", some Wagnerians seemed to have momentarily forgotten their aversion to Valentin Schwarz's production, known as the "Netflix-Ring". Or perhaps Schwarz's idea of telling Wagner's opera about the stolen Rhinegold, stolen Rhinemaidens, the greedy godfather Wotan, giants and dwarves as a modern family saga in the style of a streaming series, works better with the years.
Besides Young, Olafur Sigurdarson as Alberich is particularly celebrated, who is transforming into a new, great Bayreuth audience favorite. Tomasz Konieczny as Wotan and Okka von der Damerau as Erda also receive much applause.
Schwarz's production is highly controversial and was mercilessly criticized by large parts of the Bayreuth audience in the past two years. The production team, however, traditionally only shows itself to the public after the fourth "Ring-Part", "Götterdämmerung".
"Special 'Ring' in the Jubilee Year"
The Schwarz-"Ring" is scheduled to be on the program for the last time next year after four seasons. Then comes the great jubilee year 2026, in which the festival celebrates its 150th birthday and all Richard Wagner operas in the standard repertoire, as well as the early work "Rienzi", are to be performed. According to festival spokesman Herrmann, there are special plans for this: "There will be a special 'Ring' only in the jubilee year," he told dpa. No details were revealed.
- Simone Young, the conductor, expressed her gratitude to the audience in Germany for their warm reception during her debut at the Bayreuth Festivals, conducting the first part of Richard Wagner's "Der Ring des Nibelungen," specifically "Rheingold."
- In Bayreuth this year, more women, including Simone Young, Nathalie Stutzmann, and Oksana Lyniv, are leading the orchestras than men, marking a significant shift in the festival's history.
- Additionally, Opel became the festival's main sponsor this season, funding some aspects of Valentin Schwarz's controversial production of "Der Ring des Nibelungen," commonly known as the "Netflix-Ring."
- Despite the controversy surrounding Schwarz's modern interpretation of Wagner's opera as a streaming series-style family saga, some audience members have grown to appreciate its unique twist on the classic tale.
- Besides Simone Young, other standout performances included Olafur Sigurdarson as Alberich, Tomasz Konieczny as Wotan, and Okka von der Damerau as Erda, all of whom received rousing applause from the audience at Bayreuth.
- In the future, the Schwarz-"Ring" will only be featured for one more season before making way for the festival's upcoming jubilee year in 2026, during which all Richard Wagner operas will be performed in celebration of the 150th anniversary of the Bayreuth Festivals.
- To mark this special occasion, the festival has planned a unique "Ring" production exclusively for the jubilee year, and additional details are expected to be revealed soon.
