Shaumet Music | Das Rheingold, arr. Jonathan Dove and Graham Vick
24 April, 2026, City Recital Hall, Sydney, NSW
Artistic Directors: Anke Hoeppner-Ryan, Barry Ryan
Music Director & Conductor: Toby Wong
Shaumet Chamber Orchestra
Cast:
Wotan: Shane Lowrencev
Alberich: Simon Lobelson
Loge: Raphael Hudson
Fricka: Livia Brash
Donner: Bernard Leong-Lokman
Freia: Aleta Shang
Erda: Jill Sullivan
Fasolt: Tristan Entwistle
Fafner: Charles Cole
Woglinde: Camilla Wright
Wellgunde: Katrina Waters
Flosshilde: Angelique Tot
A chamber version of Das Rheingold cut down from 150 to 100 minutes and an orchestra of 110 scaled back to 19? Really? Wagner’s “Ring” is the quintessence of large scale operas. Surely this must be a travesty, like Hoffnung’s recorder consort playing the 1812 Overture. But wait!
Dove and Vick wrote this version for the City of Birmingham Touring Opera Company in 1990 and it toured up and down the UK in town halls and sports centres, rather than opera houses. So the City Recital Hall is a luxury performance space by comparison!
This was not a concert version; there were costumes and dramatic action, but no sets. Only three props were used; a sparkling gold cloth for the gold, the ring and a pair of sunglasses in place of the magic Tarnhelm! Not even a spear (the symbol of Wotan’s power) or a hammer for Donner. The character of Mime was excised all together, and Froh and Donner were rolled into a single character. The chamber orchestra occupied the left of the stage and the drama the right.
The excisions were obvious from the start; the long slow introduction which builds from nothing in the bass was substantially shortened. But any misgivings about all this were immediately dispelled by the resplendent entry of the Rhine maidens. Their voices shone and their excellent ensemble singing rang out like a brass choir.
Before the show Hoeppner-Ryan asked the audience’s indulgence for Simon Lobelson who had the flu, but was singing anyway to avoid cancelling the production. Well it did not show. His Alberich was vocally satisfying and his acting energetic and convincing; an impressive save.
One benefit of the scaling down of the orchestra and reducing the duration is that huge, robust, heroic voices are not essential and a more lyrical approach could be taken. Most of the voices of this all-Australian cast had the timbre appropriate for Wagner. Charles Cole’s resounding bass as Fafner comes to mind, Livia Brash’s impressively penetrating Fricka, and Jill Sullivan as Erda exuded authority. But the outstanding vocal performance was from Raphael Hudson as Loge. His voice was strong and musical, and his diction crystal clear. This young man will go far as a Wagnerian singer.
The acting and direction as a whole was excellent too.
And what of the orchestra? There were only a few moments when the sound was underwhelming for seasoned Wagner listeners, but on the whole the effect was impressively convincing. The limited instrumentation, orchestrated with great skill by Dove, gave full rich textures consistent with the original. In fact, with the focus on the singers, the orchestra fulfilled its part seamlessly and its reduced scale did not impinge psychologically. The musical drama flowed seamlessly and convincingly under the direction of the young Toby Wong.
There were large projections on a screen behind the stage showing fantasy-style artworks for each scene (Disney-like mermaids and horrible Nibelungen) and a brief one sentence description. What was missed, especially by audience members who were not familiar with the opera, was surtitles. For future performances I think this would be well worth the effort, especially since the projection system was already in place. No need to go high-tech: a Powerpoint slide-show and an operator with a score would suffice.
It may be sacrilege to say so, but Wagner can be somewhat long-winded. There is scope for some judicious editing and this is where Dove and Vick have boldly gone. This production was a resounding success. The audience loved it. It should be well funded and toured around the country. And bring on a chamber version Die Walküre, Siegfried and Götterdämmerung!
Photo credit: Cassandra Hannagan
