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Wagner: The Valkyrie ENO Orchestra/Paul Daniel The Times enjoyed the 'dazzling images that pervade this show' and enthused about the musical performance, 'simply immense', and the singing 'utterly, dramatically convincing'; a 'brilliantly striking production' with 'intimate duets observed with delicacy of nuance and hidden depths of pain'; dominated by Wotan's baleful influence - - 'he practically invented incest - - On the other hand, the Financial Times deplores the 'incoherent staging' and that Phyllida Lloyd doesn't understand what operatic stars do; 'with a whole orchestra between them and even the front stalls, close-up subtlety isn't on'. From back stalls (side of Row M) they registered fully for us, and the words which underpinned the gestures were commendably clear too. The Guardian found it all 'darkly depressing'; the singing ranging from 'excrutiatingly out of tune' to 'thoroughly decent', the production 'a muddle of contemporary imagery', the final scene 'utterly crass'.
MusicalPointers too found itself divided in appraising the evening. The stage pictures were evocative, if often inscrutable, for one of us. They need elucidation; why do programme books lack contributions from directors about their thinking, as often provided as extras with opera DVDs? Some of the more striking images were intriguing but seriously distracted attention from the music, e.g. the paragliding valkyries who kept dropping green ice lollies accidentally during their hectic Ride (flares, my wife believes they were) whilst trying to control their steeds. I found the singing at our performance, which had clearly settled down after the press night, very acceptable. Pär Lindskog (no longer 'excruciatingly out of tune'!) Orla Boylan, Robert Hayward, Susan Parry and Kathleen Broderick all gave depths to their interpretations of a different slant on the doomed relationships in Wotan's incestuous extended family, from Sieglinde's nightmares to the rejection of favourite daughter, leaving Brunnhilde damaged and vulnerable. Per Lindskog was no longer 'excruciatingly out of tune'! Alexa found the directional gimmicks increasingly disenchanting after a promising first act, but i took them in good part and thought it a great show. So it is a Valkyrie to see and decide for yourself at The Coliseum or, in due course, on TV - ENO's sponsors are sky and artsworld - and maybe there'll be a DVD to follow in due course. Alexa & Peter Grahame Woolf |
Brunnhilde an abused child who has ceased to be of interest to the violator'. (That theme is elaborated by Germaine Greer in the ENO programme book.) My first illustration is of Brunnhilde resisting Wotan and his assistants before the injection which will put her to sleep. 
For a witty and mainly sympathetic description of what we see - 'paragliding valkyries and torsos of lost warriors suggestive of gay cartoon iconography' - try MusicWeb which, agreeing with a general view, finds that the orchestra 'play with superb control and tonal brilliance' though 'diction often goes for nothing' - where was Marc Bridle sitting? Critics rarely share this crucial information with their readers.