randy_byers: (blonde venus)
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Pyramid Sellers is listed as playing the valkyrie Gerhilde in the 1990 Metropolitan Opera production of Wagner's Die Walküre. It's the only reference to her I can find on the web. Pseudonym? One would hope!

As I think I've mentioned before, I'm making my way through the DVDs of this production of the Ring. So far I'm having pretty much the same reaction to the individual operas that I had when I saw them live at the Seattle Opera last summer. I liked all of Das Rheingold and I liked the first two acts of Die Walküre (especially the scene in Act 2 where Brünnhilde first appears to Siegmund in the moonlight) while finding large parts of the third problematic (although I do like "The Ride of the Valkyries" at the beginning and the magic fire music at the end.) The problematic part of Act 3 is the long discussion between Brünnhilde and Wotan about why (or whether) she betrayed him by trying to protect Siegmund against his professed will. The substance of the argument itself is interesting, but I find it overlong and much of the music not so interesting. Still, there were a couple of moments where the vocal work of now Brünnhilde and now Wotan were very beautiful even in this section. Over all, however, I got pretty bored and fidgety again, and that's even though I watched the opera in two different sittings, split about midway through the second act.

Date: 2013-11-05 09:03 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] mrhedgehog.livejournal.com
I wanted to see this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHsz3u5JyE4
but there was only two shows. Maybe next year

Date: 2013-11-06 01:37 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] randy-byers.livejournal.com
Is that a natural body of water, or was it built for the opera house?

Date: 2013-11-06 09:42 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] mrhedgehog.livejournal.com
It's an old quarry, that is now an amphitheatre. But I don't know if they also add water to it. Here's the wikipedia page:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dalhalla

Date: 2013-11-06 09:45 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] randy-byers.livejournal.com
And of course I just noticed that the name Dalhalla is pretty close to Valhalla, which is built in Das Rheingold.

Date: 2013-11-07 09:34 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] mrhedgehog.livejournal.com
Yes, they choose the name for that reason, and because it's in a region called Dalarna.

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