Epic opera project unveiled to S. Korean public
- 5 years ago
3년에 걸쳐 선보일 오페라 '니벨룽의 반지' 서울에서 베일 벗는다
Renowned German director Achim Freyer has embarked on a three-year long project in Seoul.
The goal: to stage one of the most challenging operatic works ever written,…the Ring of the Nibelung.
Won Jung-hwan fills us in on what to expect from the Korean production of Wagner's epic.
The Ring of the Nibelung was first performed in Seoul in 2005 as part of a world tour, but now Richard Wagner's 19th century masterpiece is being produced in South Korea for the first time.
German painter, director and stage designer, Achim Freyer, is unveiling the show in South Korea on Wednesday evening at Seoul Arts Center.
The show depicts the fatal struggles of gods, men and mythical creatures to secure a magic ring that gives its owner the power to rule the world.
The massive opera is divided into 4 parts and will be staged over a one-and-a-half-year period.
The prelude opera, 'the Rhinegold' will be performed this month,… and the remaining three acts -- "The Valkyrie," "Siegfried" and "Twilight of the Gods" -- will in turn be staged in June and December next year and May 2020 respectively.
Freyer has produced versions of the opera in Germany and the U.S., but he says the Korean version is different from his two previous productions.
"When I do a piece, it is very new, I cannot repeat, why? We are in Korea and its total other situation, and total other impressions."
As a German citizen, who has experienced the reality of national division, Freyer says he has tweaked the original production by attempting to weave the politics of his own time into the Korean version.
And to try to show an authentic image of peace and unification,… the production's organisers say they are trying to invite North Korean singers to take part.
"We are currently in touch with Pyeongyang through the North Korean Embassy in Berlin,… We couldn't cast North Korea singers for the 1st part of the performance since it overlapped with the 70th anniversary of the nation's founding. But we will keep trying as there are more years left for them to join our series."
The first part of the opera will run until Sunday before a 6 month preparation period to showcase the 2nd part of the epic in June next year.
Won Jung-hwan, Arirang News.
Renowned German director Achim Freyer has embarked on a three-year long project in Seoul.
The goal: to stage one of the most challenging operatic works ever written,…the Ring of the Nibelung.
Won Jung-hwan fills us in on what to expect from the Korean production of Wagner's epic.
The Ring of the Nibelung was first performed in Seoul in 2005 as part of a world tour, but now Richard Wagner's 19th century masterpiece is being produced in South Korea for the first time.
German painter, director and stage designer, Achim Freyer, is unveiling the show in South Korea on Wednesday evening at Seoul Arts Center.
The show depicts the fatal struggles of gods, men and mythical creatures to secure a magic ring that gives its owner the power to rule the world.
The massive opera is divided into 4 parts and will be staged over a one-and-a-half-year period.
The prelude opera, 'the Rhinegold' will be performed this month,… and the remaining three acts -- "The Valkyrie," "Siegfried" and "Twilight of the Gods" -- will in turn be staged in June and December next year and May 2020 respectively.
Freyer has produced versions of the opera in Germany and the U.S., but he says the Korean version is different from his two previous productions.
"When I do a piece, it is very new, I cannot repeat, why? We are in Korea and its total other situation, and total other impressions."
As a German citizen, who has experienced the reality of national division, Freyer says he has tweaked the original production by attempting to weave the politics of his own time into the Korean version.
And to try to show an authentic image of peace and unification,… the production's organisers say they are trying to invite North Korean singers to take part.
"We are currently in touch with Pyeongyang through the North Korean Embassy in Berlin,… We couldn't cast North Korea singers for the 1st part of the performance since it overlapped with the 70th anniversary of the nation's founding. But we will keep trying as there are more years left for them to join our series."
The first part of the opera will run until Sunday before a 6 month preparation period to showcase the 2nd part of the epic in June next year.
Won Jung-hwan, Arirang News.