Houston Opera presents Palau de les Arts' production of The Ring of the Nibelung
29.01.2013
This is the second Valencian production to be shown in the United States, following the success of Beethoven's Fidelio in Los Angeles.
– The Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía has rented the Houston Grand Opera's production of Richard Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen ( The Ring of the Nibelung) .
The American opera company announced this past Wednesday its program for the upcoming season, which will include, in April 2014, the first of the titles comprising Wagner's Ring Cycle , Das Rheingold . Die Walküre will be presented in the 2014-2015 season, Siegfried in 2015-2016, and Götterdämmerung in the 2016-2017 season.
Richard Wagner's Ring Cycle , conducted by Zubin Mehta at the Palau de les Arts, has become the most awarded and acclaimed production in the history of the Valencian arts center and of Spanish opera.
The Maestranza in Seville was the first theater to rent this co-production of the Palau de les Arts and the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, staged by Carlus Padrissa, from La Fura dels Baus.
In 2008, the production won the Franco Abbiati Prize from Italian music critics, one of the most prestigious awards in Europe. In Spain, the Valencian Ring Cycle has received two awards at the Campoamor Theater Lyric Awards in Oviedo.
Likewise, the DVD and Blu-ray editions of Der Ring des Nibelungen have enjoyed a successful run in international markets. The German Record Critics Association awarded two of its prizes to Die Walküre . Firstly, and subsequently, throughout the entire Valencian Ring . For its part, the Echo Klassik Awards—the most prestigious awards in the German recording industry—recognized the Palau de les Arts production as the best DVD of 2010.
The French specialized press has also bestowed its highest accolades upon this production. The magazine Classica It has been distinguished with its 'Choc' award, while Opéra Magazine has awarded it its 'Diamant d'opéra'. Diapason highlighted the work's first title, Das Rheingold , with the 'Diapason d'Or', considered the most significant independent award for classical music in Europe.
Rented productions
Fidelio became the first Valencian production to be performed outside the Palau de les Arts in 2007. The staging, conceived by Pier'Alli for the opening of the arts center's inaugural season, inaugurated the 2007-2008 Los Angeles Opera season at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion a year later. Fidelio is also the first Valencian production to be released on DVD.
Turandot , directed by Chen Kaige for the opening of the first Festival del Mediterrani, has been the most in-demand production to date. The Chinese filmmaker's version, which sold out both its 2007 premiere under the direction of Zubin Mehta and its 2008 revival with Lorin Maazel, was part of the program at the A Coruña Opera Festival in 2009. Months later, the production opened the 2009-2010 season at the Monte-Carlo Opera. Turandot was also the title that inaugurated the new Guangzhou Opera House in China, with Lorin Maazel conducting the Zaha Hadid-designed auditorium.
The arts center's zarzuela productions have also attracted artistic interest from other leading opera houses. Emilio Sagi's version of La Bruja was performed at the Baluarte de Navarra in 2008, while the staging of El rey que rabió , Also signed by the director from Oviedo, he traveled in 2009 with the Orquestra de la Comunitat Valenciana to Girona to be part of the programming of the Castell de Peralada Festival.
Finally, Francisco Negrín's production of Una cosa rara by Vicente Martín i Soler, the second of the Valencian composer's titles produced by the Palau de les Arts, has been performed at the Teatro Calderón in Valladolid and at the Auditorio Víctor Villegas in Murcia.
