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Die Walküre
Mariinsky Opera at Covent Garden

When the Mariinsky Opera, under its ultra-hyperactive chief Valery Gergiev, brought its touring Ring to Cardiff in 2006, it was the low point of my life as an opera-goer, with, it is fair to say, no redeeming feature. After strong criticism from many people in many places, the production has been considerably altered, but since Gergiev makes a point of performing the cycle in four days, there are still many changes of cast for the main roles, and the singers involved are not, mainly, Wagnerians, nor German speakers. They have to live at the hectic pace that Gergiev insists on, decisions as to who will sing in which performance are left till late in the day, and the whole thing has an improvised feel. I couldn’t face going to the complete cycle, so I chose Die Walküre on the basis that it is the least likely to be an utter fiasco.