“Opera Gloves” to appear in Dirty Girls: Erotica For Women
My story “Opera Gloves”, which was originally to appear in the canceled Alyson Books anthology Second Skin, will be appearing in the upcoming anthology Dirty Girls: Erotica for Women
“Opera Gloves” is about a lesbian sexual encounter in a box at the Wiener Staatsoper, and features a pair of very long, very shiny black PVC gloves.
Ring Cycle Double Header: Siegfried and Gotterdammerung
There is a ring-shaped hole in my heart.
Now that it’s over, what is there to look forward to? I saw all the great scenes, all the effects, the singing, Margaret Atwood - and now it’s over.
But the fact that I am sad to see it end is, of course, a good sign. I feel like now I really get The Ring, understand how it fits together and why it’s so important. The man who gave the pre-opera talk mentioned that Wagner began writing the Ring Cycle the same year La Traviata came out. I love La Traviata, but in terms of insight and musical sophistication there’s absolutely no comparison.
As before, I wasn’t really paying much attention to whether the singers were any good, but simply letting myself get caught up in the immensity of it. And in terms of epic sweep, it didn’t disappoint - one thing I loved was how each opera made it apparent that it was but one part of a whole, carrying certain visual concepts and costumes forward from one installment to the next while also, through moving the action from the 19th century to the present day (Hagen and Alberich had iMacs!), invoking the passage of time.
A few posts ago I mentioned that I would like to see a Ring set in the corporate world. Gotterdammerung provided just that, with the Gibichungs in suits and ties, hashing out their plans in a massive boardroom with computer screens that glowed red. I think it’s marvellously effective - what surer symbols of sinister power do we have today than the trappings of executive offices? The Rhinemaidens were brilliantly sexed-up (again, I was wondering if I was about to see a Rhinemaiden makeout) and the Norns had very stylish black outfits.
The Siegfried production took place in a psychological world seemingly removed from time, where Siegfried’s white garb made him look a little like a mental patient (”He’s not supposed to be a depressive”, commented an annoyed patron behind me). It seems as though Wagner had a glimmering of just how astonishingly unsympathetic a character he’d created for his “great hero”, and he makes much more sense in the removed, lonely world created by that production. The dragon was created out of suspended, white-garbed bodies, and was truly unsettling (unlike, I imagine, a more “realistic” dragon would have been).
As I predicted, my rowmates began to get chatty at the Siegfried production. The man sitting next to me had come all the way from England, and we commiserated over people with the audacity to crinkle plastic bags during the performance.
Also, this was the first time I’ve ever heard booing in an opera house, although the audience was generally extremely enthusiastic. It was mostly the directors receiving the brunt of the booing, I imagine because non-traditional Wagner productions are upsetting to a few purists. If anything else, it was an indication that the COC is now playing in the big leagues.
My tickets were worth every penny, and I was seldom bored, even during Siegfried, which is a slog even by Ring Cycle standards.. I don’t know how many chances I’ll get in my life to see a full production of the Ring, and this one was even more exciting than I thought it would be.
Ring Cycle #2: Die Walkure
First, a bunch of Ring-related links:
Scheduled Wotan withdraws from the entire cycle. His replacement had been planning to retire from the role for good, but no such luck.
Trailer for hollywood “Ring of the Nibelungs”
(via YouTube - this was released in 2004. Seems to have been trying to piggyback on the success of Lord of the Rings.)
YouTube again - Finale of Das Rheingold - from a Bayreuth production, 1976.
Die Walkure did not disappoint. In fact, even though I’ve listened to Du Bist der Lenz so many times on CD, I still found it heart-stopping last night. And it was all so much more emotionally moving (rather than just intellectually edifying) than I expected.
I had worried that I’d be stuck listening to Frances Ginzer as Brunnhilde last night. I saw her a few years in Turandot as well as last year in Siegfried, and hated her singing both times. Every note sounded like a struggle, like it was a supreme feat of vocal strength to extract it from her voice box. Of course the music is difficult, but I want to hear musical sensitivity, not straining and struggle. So I was delighted to find that Brunnhilde would be sung instead by Susan Bullock, who had everything - a good sense of phrasing, engaging acting, a sense of youthful energy - that Ginzer lacked.
I also had fun examining the audience members and trying to pick out the true Wagner devotees from the casual operagoers. I developed the following completely unverifiable set of guidelines:
Anyone who:
- Is carrying a libretto or musical score
- Is speaking German
- Is attending all four operas by him/herself
- Is wearing a tuxedo despite sitting in the cheapest of the cheap seats
- Is wearing a costume (I saw more than one horned helmet)
- Is a man sitting in a corner doing needlepoint between acts
…is likely to be a True Believer.
Also, I was thisclose to Margaret Atwood in the throng of people exiting the theatre afterward. She seemed to be in high spirits.
Tomorrow: Siegfried. There will be fewer surprises with this installment, since I saw the test run last year (and was impressed). Even so, I’m looking forward to it. The dragon is really cool.
Ring Cycle #1: Das Rheingold
One down, three to go.
I have no idea whether that was a good Das Rheingold or a mediocre one. I wasn’t sitting there wondering if Wotan’s voice was cavernous and commanding enough or whether the orchestra was truly disciplined. Instead, I was revelling in the music and the story, setting aside my habitual criticisms and simply feeling thankful to be finally attending a complete performance of the Ring Cycle, the penultimate experience for an operagoer.
It comes at just the right time. My long-held enthusiasm for opera has been slowly fading and the Bohemes and the Carmens, as much as I love them, have begun to seem a bit tiresome. But this is something else, something that reminds me what a really great night at the opera can do.
And now, enough gushing.
The story opens with three cavorting Rhinemaidens. They were dressed in white nightgowns and were having a pillowfight, making me wonder if they would soon begin making out. The arrival of Alberich, an ugly drawf, interrupts any planned makeouts and they begin to tease him. After humiliating Alberich, the Rhinemaidens foolishly tell him all about the gold they are guarding. The gold can be forged into a ring that gives the wearer ultimate power (sound familiar?), but only by someone who vows to renounce love forever. The Rhinemaidens aren’t worried about anyone stealing their gold, however, since they’re convinced that no one would ever completely sacrifice love for wealth or power. They’re proved wrong when Alberich promptly renounces love and steals the gold.
And, well, a bunch of other stuff happens, but no need to detail it here. The production was very visually striking, with the billowy curtains of the first scene replaced in the following scenes with industrial revolution steel and victorian costumes (one memorable visual moment is when the Rhinemaidens’ flowing white nightgowns were corseted and then encased in massive Victorian mourning gowns during the transition).
Depicting the gods as the established aristocratic powers, Alberich as an upstart capitalist, and the giants as working-class labourers is perhaps not “traditional” (in the way a horned-helmet-and-breastplate production would be) but quite aligned with Wagner’s original vision, since there are indications he originally intended it as a socialist political allegory. I have heard of a Ring set in the corporate world, and would be very curious to see it.
A few other notes:
- Alberich commits the classic mistake of movie villains - explaining, gleefully and at great length, all the details of his evil plans for world domination.
- I liked the finger-chopping-off bit. Having Loge wipe up the blood afterward was effective.
- The scheduled Wotan was suffering from laryngitis, and his short-notice replacement acquitted himself very well.
- During the Rhinemaiden scene, Wotan was asleep on the floor, centre stage. I’m not sure what that was supposed to signify.
- The Ring Cycle is even kinder to its women than I had thought. The female characters have more brains and dignity than most of the male characters (Siegmund might be an exception, but the men generally have few redeeming values). One of the overarching themes of The Ring is the sacrifice of love for wealth and power, and the women, as the frequent sacrificees, are the ones who eventually upend the corrupt rule of the gods and redeem humankind.
Das Rheingold isn’t anyone’s favorite opera and is probably the weakest of the four, but I have never heard a more enthusiastic audience. I found myself wondering if the people sitting around me would be attending the rest of the cycle, and whether we would be chatting with each other by the time we got to Siegfried. It felt like An Event, as the first Canadian Ring should feel, and I have more hope than ever that the complete experience will be satisfying.
Next On the Calendar…
As I am gearing up for tomorrow’s premiere of the COC’s Das Rheingold (the first in the four-part der Ring des Nibelungen, presented in its entirety for the first time in Canada) and consequently for a slew of opera posts, it’s serendipitous that today I came across this, via parterre box (links NSFW).
So far he’s done Colin Ainsworth, William Burden, David Daniels, Simon Keenlyside, Nathan Gunn, and Erwin Schrott - beautiful men all (and some of them beautiful singers), even before their, um, enhancements.
Pictures from Das Rheingold
Pictures from the Das Rheingold dress rehearsal. I’m beyond excited.
Staying Put
I just came out the other end of a brief time of panic where I thought I would be moving to NYC. For the moment, it seems, I’m not. Same job, same apartment, same friends…so soon after getting settled for good here in Toronto, I’m restless again.
It was a month of getting exciting things in the mail. My copies of Sexiest Soles and Secret Slaves arrived, and they are shiny and beautiful and chock full of excellent stories. Also, my tickets to Der Ring Des Nibelungen arrived at last. After many years of listening, I’ll finally be attending the Ring Cycle in performance for the first time.
One installment I’ve seen already - Siegfried. If it’s any indication of the quality of the whole cycle, it will be a beautiful and imaginative four nights at the theatre. I’m always amazed at how the feel and mood of an opera can come across so differently in live performace than on CD. The first stretch of Siegfriend takes place in a cave, and much of the music has a dim, oppressive feel. It’s a startling breath of fresh air when the action moves to the forest, and the music begins to shimmer with life.
And yes, much of the music is - let’s admit it - boring, and he does wind up singing about his sword for roughly an hour. But there are so many moments of beauty and sensuality that arise seemingly from nothing, and surprise you by surpassing themselves over and over again. Learning to appreciate and love Wagner has been a long process for me, but it seems to be giant leaps forward every time.