San Francisco Ring Cycle

Every article about a new Wagner Ring Cycle has to give a brief, witty description of the costumes, stage decor, and overall theme. It never gets old; they’re always delightful and make me laugh, even if the routine starts to resemble the amusement of pressing a button at some website with a random haiku generator or random postmodernism generator.

There could even be a random city as the dateline, chosen from a database of world cities. Anyway, here’s the latest:

“SAN FRANCISCO — When the three Rhinemaidens appear at the opening of the San Francisco Opera’s production of Wagner’s ‘Rheingold,’ they look like wholesome young women in gingham dresses right out of a John Ford western. Alberich the dwarf intrudes on the scene, a grimy forty-niner in sturdy boots and overalls, panning for gold and looking desperate.

Wotan and his dysfunctional family of gods look like characters out of ‘The Great Gatsby.’ The preppy Donner and Froh wear beige suits emblazoned with the family crest; Wotan could be a robber baron in leather boots, frock coat and fedora; his wily wife, Fricka, has a perfect permanent and a dignified dress.”

This one doesn’t sound half bad.