Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1899-01-06
AN OPERA ONE DAY LONG
Its Presentation Will Require
Twenty-four Hours.
WILL BE SUNG IN NEW YORK.

Wagner'S Opera, "Der Ring Der Nibe-
Iungen,'' VIII he Divided Among
Four Nights-LOngest Evening Per-
fornance VIII He Seven Hours.
Score of the Opera.
One opera requiring "a hours for it's
presentation is to be given in New
York city next January. No musical
undertaking SO stupendous has ever be-
fore been attempted in the new world.
1t will equal Baireuth itself, and Bal
reuth is to the Wagner worshiper what
Mecca is to the Moslem.
Not "a consecutive hours, of course;
it is not as bad as that, but divided
among four nights, as the management
has planned. The longest evening per-
Torrance will be even hours. Remember
that only two hours is the time required
to present the average drama. London
tried the same experiment last summer
The performance began in the middle
of the afternoon and lasted until after
II. Curiously enough, the great ques-
ton then was not whether Londoners
would be willing to sit in a chair for
seven hours-with an intermission to
enable the audience to eat-but whether
evening toys should be worn in the after
noon. London will not forget it soon.
The opera is Wagner's "Der Ring der
Nibelungen." The scenery for "Die
Nibelungen'' will be the most magnifi-
cent ever seen in the United States, and
it's mechanical c%ontrivances will be
simply marvellous. Herr +. Kranich,
the machinist in charge of the Baireuth
production, is coming to America with
new ideas for fitting up the stage.
Beautiful "Rhine maidens'' will float
in a lifelike river in a manner even more
graceful than the appliances permitted
them to do at Baireuth.
The management promises that every
act will begin promptly on time, and
the moment the curtain goes up all the
doors Of the opera house.wi be closed.
They say that there will be no %restric-
ton in New York in regard to the
dress Of the audience.
The cast for "Die Nibelungen" will
include nearly all of the famous people
who took part in the production at Bal
reuth and London, both the De Reszkes,
Mines. Gadsky and Nordica, Herr Neibe
Of Karlsruhe and Herr Won Milde of
Baireuth, besides the beautiful prima
donna, Frau Schumann Heink, who is
a new addition to the ranks of the great
European singers who visit America.
Few people in the United States have
aver taken the time or trouble to read
through the long score of ode Nibe-
l%ungen." The opera consists of a blend
ing together into one plot Of a series
Of striking incidents from the mythology
of the Scandinavians and Teutons. The
time is the beginning Of the world,
when there were gods, giants or mortal
men and Niblungs, or the race Of
dwarfs living in the center Of the earth.
A piece Of gold lying on the bottom Of
the river Rhine is guarded by the
"Rhine maidens." The virtue in the
possession of this piece of gold consists
Of it's giving its owner the power to
have anything done he wishes. But the
gold seems always to bring ruin to its
owner.
A leader among the Niblungs, called
Alberich, succeeds in stealing the gold
when the "Rhine maidens" are asleep.
After he has enjoyed great power in the
ownership of the gold-whioh he at
once formed into the shape Of a massive
ring-he is pounced upon by Wotan,
the father Of the gods, who steals the
ring. The god has plenty of power CIV
en- him by the ring, but soon he has to
give it up to two giants named Fasalt
and Fafner in payment for building =
new castle for him, called Walhalla.
The moment the giants get possession
Of the ring they fight for its sole own
ership, and one kills the other in the
presence Of Wotan. The latter feels dis
graced that he should be the cause of
murder, and failing to recover the ring,
SO that he may restore it to the "Rhins
.maidens," he determines to beget a
new race of heroes, which shall be able
to take the ring from the giants and
give it back to the maidens, He has
two children-Siegmund and Sieglinde
who marry each other without sus.
pecting their relationship, and their
son is the hero Of the opera-the since
farfamed Siegfried. Wotan quarrels
with one of his divine daughters named
Brunnhilde, who had sided with the
father of Siegfried. She is converted
into a mortal maiden by her father and
surrounded at a safe distance by a wall
of fire to keep off treacherous men.
Siegfried goes forth, when grown to
manhood, and kills the giant Fafner,
who had turned himself into a dragon
in order to better guard his gold ring.
Then Siegfried meets Brunnhilde, after
forcing his way through the wall Of
fire. They become man and wife and he
goes off temporarily to kill an enemy Of
his father. He enters the house Of .
giant named Gunther, who is in love
with Brunnhilde. The sister Of Gunther
gives Siegfried a drink of wine, in
which there is a love potion. Siegfried
forgets B%runnhilde and marries Gun.
TIERS sister, and then finds Brunnhilde
and gives her to Gunther in marriage.
Siegfried goes hunting on the banks
of the river Rhine with the gold ring on
bis finger which he had taken from the
dragon. The Rhine maidens warn him
to give them the ring or he will meet
his death that day. He laughs at them,
and 1901 afterward is stabbed by the
son of a man he has killed in combat.
Siegfried recognizes B%runnhilde on his
deathbed, and when his body is being
burned IN the funeral pyre Brunnhilds
throws herself in the flames, and their