BEIJING, Oct. 22 -- For most opera lovers, attending Wagner's magnificent four-opera cycle, "Der Ring des Nibelungen," is the ultimate dream. And now the dream of Chinese fans is about to come true.

    German's Nuremberg State Theatre will premiere the four-night production at the Poly Theatre on Sunday, Wednesday, October 29 and November 1 as the major programme of the Eighth Beijing Music Festival.

    In the eyes of Yu Long, artistic director of the Beijing Music Festival, this is a historic event in the cultural sphere of Asia.

    "It is a huge undertaking not every opera company can do, as it must gather the greatest talent available," Yu said. "Therefore, it is seldom staged. And it is ever harder to find one to fit our festival's schedule.

    "We had two choices and finally signed a contract with the Nuremberg State Theatre. Their contemporary version with the company's superb orchestra under the baton of Philippe Auguin, promises to be a landmark event."

    It took Richard Wagner 26 years (1848-74) to complete what he called his master artwork of the future. With it, he explored human jealousy, greed, loyalty, passion, the wages of sin and the redemptive power of love, all while creating the music.

    The Nuremberg State Theatre brought more than 240 performers and production personnel and 12 huge containers of settings and costumes to Beijing.

    "I hope we can reach the Chinese audience because people from different countries and cultural background share some common emotions and thoughts, which are what Wagner interprets in his 'Ring Cycle,'" Auguin said. "It is not only a classical musical work, but also a monumental work of all culture, arts, philosophy.

    Others have questioned whether the four-night productions would have a broad appeal. But according to Zeng Wei, programme director of Beijing Music Festival, the tickets of all the four nights have sold very well so far. Many Peking University students have bought the four-night tickets, he said.

    
(Source: China Daily)