October 03 2011

Spanjaard’s masterly ‘Siegfried’

It seemed that the applause in Enschede would never end. Those who attended the première on Sunday from two o’clock in the afternoon till half past seven in the evening were wildly enthusiastic, having feasted their ears and eyes on a performance of Wagner’s ‘Siegfried’ that was masterly in all respects.

With its head held high, the National Reisopera shows great spirit in continuing at top level with Wagner’s four-part ‘Der Ring des Nibelungen’, on whose construction it began in 2009. It is remarkable that they can still summon up so much energy and perseverance in Enschede, even though Secretary of State Zijlstra will be reducing the fully-fledged opera company to a puny ‘production core’ from 2013. A spokesman described the Reisopera’s attitude as ‘Lachender Tod’; those are the final words in ‘Siegfried’.

It was as if the company wanted to doubly underline its right to exist by coming up with such an inimitably fine staging of the most difficult part of the ‘Ring’. As primus inter pares, conductor Ed Spanjaard deserved most of the praise. Many international opera houses will look with jealousy at what he managed to achieve with an unfettered Orkest van het Oosten. From the very first notes, the great orchestra pit witnessed the unfolding of a musical miracle that can hardly be described. What a wild beginning there was to the third act and what affection there was in the prelude to the last scene! A masterly orchestra, led by a masterly conductor, inevitably delivered a masterly performance – one that will long echo on.

Meanwhile, stage director Antony McDonald (also responsible for scenery and costumes) continued inventively and infectiously with the demythologization of this epic drama of men and gods. With him, Wotan is all but a happy gamekeeper in plus fours, who hangs his hat and coat neatly on the hook when visiting the smithy of the Nibelung, Mime, and the boudoir of earth-mother Erda. The boudoir is where Erda (splendidly sung by Ceri Williams) keeps the love-letters of the ruler of the gods and where she has stuck little photos of her daughter Brünnhilde in the dressing-table mirror.

The children’s prams are splendid, too: a reference to all those generations who are conceived and raised almost at random but who in the end bring nothing but disaster.

McDonald’s delightfully cosy little world, lit by a standard lamp, is inhabited by a couple of thumping good voices. The Estonian tenor Mati Turi was singing the killing title role for the first time and did so with apparent ease, maintaining his clarion sound, which only became thinner and softer in the upper ranges, until the murderous end. He even managed to produce some poignant falsetto notes. A discovery.

Harry Peeters followed up his successful interpretation of Wotan with spectacular results, particularly in the confrontation with his grandson, Siegfried. Judith Németh (Brünnhilde) had a fantastic awakening and was touching in her fear for her lost divine status. Both dramatically and vocally, Adrian Thompson made a splendidly repulsive figure – half man, half woman – of the loathsome dwarf, Mime. He, too, was a debutant in the role. Bravo!