Das Rheingold

Richard Wagner’s one-of-a-kind opus The Ring Cycle is brought to pulsating life at the Deutsche Oper Berlin. Sir Donald Runnicles and Stefan Herheim have reimagined the legendary tale of gods, heroes and giants into a production for the 21st century. All of the feelings, urges and thoughts that determine our own existence also appear in the two and a half hours of THE RHINEGOLD, the first opera in the Cycle There are the not-so-innocent games played by the Rhinemaidens, who humiliate the Nibelung Alberich by mocking his clumsy advances, kindling in him the unbridled lust for power instead. There’s the scornful nihilism of the fire god Loge, as well as the father of the gods Wotan’s attempt to create something that will last, by erecting the palace of Valhalla. And last but not least, the gold itself is a mute lead character: an item of gleaming fascination, it is simultaneously a touchstone that divides gods and humans alike into good and evil.