After a three-year absence, Opera Siam will return with a semi-staged performance of Die Walküre Act One in the Main Hall of Thailand Cultural Centre, Ratchadaphisek Road, on Thursday, at 8pm.
Since 2001, Opera Siam (formerly Bangkok Opera) has produced 63 full-scale opera productions in Thailand, putting Bangkok on the world opera map and earning the city the title of "the operatic hub of Southeast Asia" from London's Opera Now and New York's Opera News.
The upcoming show will present the first act of Richard Wagner's Die Walküre, with international opera stars and the celebrated Siam Sinfonietta Orchestra, augmented to almost one hundred musicians. It is the first Wagner produced by Opera Siam since The Flying Dutchman more than a decade ago.
Hailed as one of the most powerful acts in the history of opera, the first act of Wagner's Die Walküre is often performed as a separate concert piece. It tells about a warrior fleeing through the darkness, a beautiful woman who evokes poignant memories and a sword stuck in a tree-trunk in the middle of a hut in the forest. The three main characters will be performed by Cassandra Black who will make her Wagnerian debut in this production; Warren Mok, one of the most well known of Asian tenors; and Damian Whiteley, an Australian bass and much sought-after coach who has coached international starts.
Somtow Sucharitkul will conduct the Siam Sinfonietta in this project, which is partially sponsored by the Ministry of Culture, the Goethe-Institut, the International Wagner Society and the Richard Wagner Circle Bangkok.
Somtow has earned the Golden W award from the International Wagner Society and was the first conductor to introduce full-length Wagner operas to Thailand. He conducted the Thailand premieres of Das Rheingold, Die Walküre and The Flying Dutchman. He is the first president of the Richard Wagner Circle Bangkok, the Thai member organisation of the International Wagner Society.
Tickets cost 500, 900, 1,500 and 2,000 baht and can be purchased from ticketmelon.com/operasiam/wagner. For bulk rates and student group discounts, email operasiam.pr@gmail.com.
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