Opera North: Ring

[ARBurton]

Opera North - definitely the People's Ring, so what about doing the whole at the Proms?

Perhaps a bit soon after the 2013 Wagner fest of Tannhauser, Ring, and Parsifal?

[Bert Coules]

The projection screens wouldn't really work at the Albert Hall, at least not for a large part of the audience, so it would have to be a concert version of a semi-concert version...

[Prommer]

Yes... Perhaps the best we can hope for meanwhile is some competitive Wagner encoring when Barenboim and Thielemann hit town?

[jonfan]

The projection screens wouldn't really work at the Albert Hall, at least not for a large part of the audience, so it would have to be a concert version of a semi-concert version...

Well it'll just have to stay oop north then. The reduced lighting in the hall is essential to experience the production. Hope it can be revived in a year or two. I understand it cost just over £2,000,000 to put on the six cycles, which is incredible value for money considering Sky pay £3,500,000 to show just one Premier League game.

[Stanfordian]

The projection screens wouldn't really work at the Albert Hall, at least not for a large part of the audience, so it would have to be a concert version of a semi-concert version...

Hello Bert,

Please explain about the projection screens not being suitable for the RAH.

[Simon B]

... projection screens not being suitable for the RAH.

Bert may have other reasons for this assessment, but I agree with the conclusion.

The reasons are roughly the same as those which explain the RAH being the only major venue at which surtitles are never provided. [These would have once again been a great help at Boris Godunov a few days ago IMO - having to keep looking down at a printed libretto just distracts from absorption in what's going on on stage]. This is despite the BBC persisting with the very large "multi-function laser display" (though not, yet, Colin Sell at the piano...) ranged along the back of the stage which probably could display text, especially as it seems to have been upgraded to higher resolution this year.

The problems include both the circular shape and great height of the venue. These mean that wherever you put screens, a very large proportion of the audience will be at an angle from which they are distorted, obscured or invisible. Of the remainder, many will be so far away as to nullify the visual impact and render the text elements illegible. Patrons reportedly had problems reading the surtitles even at the RFH - which is tiny by comparison.

In short, the venue is the wrong shape and far too big.

None of this is to argue against the idea of bringing the cycle, with adaptations to the visual elements, to the Proms if this were a possibility. It may be heresy but (scale of sense of occasion aside) I found it significantly more satisfying than the altogether more starry Barenboim Proms cycle, mainly due to the acoustics of The Sage being about 1000% more sympathetic and Richard Farnes' conducting being more my cup of tea. The Proms I've attended so far this year have rather paled by comparison with the recent week in Gateshead...

[Conchis]

The screens didn't even work in all the venues the Ring toured to. When I saw Siegfried at Birmingham Symphony Hall in 2013, the singers often blocked the text, at least from where I was sitting in stalls left.

[Belgrove]

The entire Opera North Ring will be available for streaming online from 12th February 2017

https://www.operanorth.co.uk/news/the-ring-returns-online-watch-the-world-end?utm_campaign=236408_170110SeasonAnnouncement1718MAIN&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Opera%20North&dm_i=3T5R,52EW,193MCJ,GUMF,1

and Das Rheingold will be shown on BBC 4 on 12th Feb at 7pm.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

The entire Opera North Ring will be available for streaming online from 12th February 2017

https://www.operanorth.co.uk/news/the-ring-returns-online-watch-the-world-end?utm_campaign=236408_170110SeasonAnnouncement1718MAIN&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Opera%20North&dm_i=3T5R,52EW,193MCJ,GUMF,1

and Das Rheingold will be shown on BBC 4 on 12th Feb at 7pm.

- Thanks for this, Belgrove; I'd heard it was imminent, but couldn't find details via Google.

[Bert Coules]

Is that the, er, prelude to a broadcast of the entire Ring? Splendid, if so, as long as the TV direction is sympatheic to the staging.

[Stanley Stewart]

A loud hurrah! Good news, indeed. Bring it on!

[jonfan]

The quality of the performance and engineering from Sage Gateshead was worthy of issuing on CDs IMO. I wonder if that is a possibility. It would be great to have that as a permanent record of Richard Farne's and Opera North's stupendous achievement.

[Conchis]

The quality of the performance and engineering from Sage Gateshead was worthy of issuing on CDs IMO. I wonder if that is a possibility. It would be great to have that as a permanent record of Richard Farne's and Opera North's stupendous achievement.

The Halle's 'one shot' performances have been/are being issued on CD, so I can think of no reason why ON shouldn't do the same. A DVD might be a bit of an issue, though, given that the text appears on the screens behind the performers - and that will distract from any on-screen subtitles.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Is that the, er, prelude to a broadcast of the entire Ring? Splendid, if so, as long as the TV direction is sympatheic to the staging.

Sadly not, I think, Bert - only Rheingold is appearing on BBC telly; everything else available only via the Beeb's Arts Online streaming. I think that this is whatever future for "televised" operas there's going to be.

[jonfan]

Sadly not, I think, Bert - only Rheingold is appearing on BBC telly; everything else available only via the Beeb's Arts Online streaming. I think that this is whatever future for "televised" operas there's going to be.

It's a pity all the operas can't be shown on BBC4 as the channel is ideal for open-ended and long performances. I think it would attract a reasonable audience as well. It would be a break from repeats of 'The Good Old Days' which seems to be staple fare at the moment on the Friday night music slot.