THE GRAND FINALE OF THE “DER RING DES NIBELUNGEN” TETRALOGY

A solemn triumph for “Götterdämmerung“
More than ten minutes of glorious applause
The Sofia Opera Wagner Festive drew an audience from all over the world. People arrived to see the Bulgarian productions of Wagner’s operas: the premiere of “Lohengrin” and “Der Ring des Nibelungen”.
The impressive beginning portrayed the three Norns weaving the strands of fate, the appearance of the hero Siegfried, the enchanting Brunhilde, the home of the Gibihungs, Gurtrune’s desire of love, Hagen’s plot, Siegfried’s death and Brunhilde’s decision to return the golden ring to the bottom of the river Rhein. The entire story really unfolded like a flawless movie played by an ensemble of artists Wagner could only dream of. The fantastic finale where the Rhein maidens receive the ring back was surreal and was showered in silvery glitter and light. The scene represented the deep waters of the river Rhein.
If „Die Walküre“ is the spectacular flight of the director’s fantasy then “Götterdämmerung“ is Plamen Kartaloff’s indisputable masterpiece. Every single thing in this production holds an infinite beauty which enchants the viewer and brings him unforgettable emotions from start to finish. The story in all four parts of the cycle leads to the culmination where the gods’ castle Valhalla is destroyed in flames. The ray of light which the tetralogy finishes is a symbol of hope for good, beauty, progress and peace. It is hard to describe the magic which unfolded on stage and the excitement in the hall. This performance was a truly profound experience for everyone!
The entire hall burst into applause praising the incredible lead singers who delivered a fiery performance: Martin Iliev (Siegfried), Yordanka Derilova (Brunhilde), Petar Buchkov (Hagen), Atanas Mladenov (Gunter), Tsvetana Bandalovska (Gutrune), Plamen Dimitrov (Alberich), Anna Werle (First Norn), Ina Petrova (Second Norn and the Rhein maiden Wellgunde), Lyubov Metodieva (Third Norn), Stanislava Momekova (Rhein maiden Woglinde), and Alexandrina Stoyanova-Andreeva (the Rhein maiden Flosshilde and her debut in the role of the Valkyrie Waltraude).
The Sofia Opera orchestra came up on stage and bowed in front of the audience’s wild ovations while conductor Evan-Alexis Christ was rewarded with a wave of bravos. There was huge applause for Plamen Kartaloff - the creator of this phenomenal performance whose boundless energy and vision create miracles. Here we have to note the huge contribution of assistant director Yuliya Krasteva who was in charge of rehearsals while setting the tetralogy.
Our congratulations go out to the Sofia Opera choir, to all technical workers, assistant directors, makeup artists, cloak room attendants and to everyone else behind the curtains who was a part of this magical experience.
conductor - Evan-Alexis Christ
stage director - Plamen Kartaloff