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Brooks Riley's avatar

This was a great introduction to what, for some, can become a life-long obsession. I saw my first Ring at the Met in the late sixties--standing the whole time. Since then, I've seen many Ring cycles, with many interpretations, and even directed the Weimar Ring for DVD. It's been a 16-hour ear worm ever since. I never tire of that music. What I find so extraordinary is the cycle's flexibility as a template for wildly diverse interpretations. This is because, like all great myths, it weaves all versions of society with individual human drives that are universal. Also, it shouldn't be forgotten that the 13th-century epic poem Das Nibelungenlied provided the mythical basis for the Ring, even if Wagner refashioned the story for his dramaturgical purposes.

The closer we get to disaster as a species, whether it's through climate change or global warfare, the more this work will resonate--in ways Wagner himself could never have foreseen, but somehow did.

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Margje's avatar

Really loved this introduction to opera and Wagner, looking forward to the next one!

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