The making of the Ring
Our first production of Wagner’s great song of love and death.
The first Ring performed complete within a week in the U.S. in a generation.
Explore the 2013 Ring Program!
Perhaps the wildest animal ever to appear on our stage…
Explore the 1973/74 Siegfried Program!
The “Green” Ring looked better than ever this summer.
Duesing implores the Evening Star to bear his love to the lady of his heart.
A complete list of Wagner performances in Seattle.
Speight’s story of saving his first-ever RING from disaster.
RING 2 achieved widespread acceptance this summer, and the number of performances increased to three.
By 1980, Seattle’s Ring was a well-known west coast cultural phenomenon.
Explore the 2010/11 Tristan and Isolde Program!
Wagner News: “An opera experience that will stay with me for the rest of my life.”
Explore the 1985/86 Die Walküre Program!
From the 2009 Ring cycle performances
Hear two of the great Wagner voices of our time, at the peak of their powers.
The last summer for Ring 1!
One of our favorite baritones sings Alberich’s curse.
Listen to a clip from Perry Lorenzo’s famous RING lectures!
A new Siegfried added to the excitement of Seattle Opera’s most ambitious summer program yet.
Speight’s dreams come true with a match made in operatic heaven.
Explore the 2005 Ring Program!
Speight remembers how the “Green” RING began its life.
Speight remembers when the “Shiite Wagnerites” demanded his head.
Speight remembers his first great success with the RING.
Greer Grimsley’s first Wagner opera—complete with giant animatronic swan!
Hear the bass who was with us from before the beginning.
“Ride of the Valkyries” — sung in English!
Excerpt from The Journal of the Wagner Society of Northern California
From the book, “Classical Music in America”
Watch a Video Excerpt
The final outing of Ring 2 was a great success, artistically—and financially!
Speight remembers how Nuremberg came to Seattle.
Explore the 1998/99 Tristan and Isolde Program!
Explore the 1979 Ring Program!
The first full performance of Seattle Opera’s beloved “Green” Ring.
Hear the voice of Seattle Opera’s resident tenor in the ’70s!
Explore the 1971/72 Flying Dutchman Program!
The most familiar music from Wagner’s RING!
The Making of the Ring
Explore the 2001 Ring Program!
Hear the voice of Noel Tyl, one of our first Wotans.
Hear the voice of Seattle Opera’s founding General Director!
A minimalist new production directed by Peter Kazaras that was inspired in part from the Ambrose Bierce short story “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge.”
Watch clips from our imaginative second production of Wagner’s Ring.
A second Ring opera is added to Seattle’s repertory.
The once-controversial “Ring 2” finally earns complete acceptance.
Glynn Ross begins introducing his favorite opera tetralogy to Seattle.
Explore the 1988/89 Flying Dutchman Program!
How the first go-around of “Ring 2” had some strengths and some weaknesses.
Explore the 1974/75 Gotterdammerung Program!
Explore the 1987 Ring Program!
Explore the 2004/05 Lohengrin Program!
From the 2009 Ring
Explore the 1995 Ring Program!
This preview of our third RING production featured the first two operas in the cycle, presented in full one year later.
Explore the program for our Summer 1981 Wagner festival, featuring the Ring and Tristan and Isolde.
Speight finds a new Siegfried–with two days notice!
Explore the 1991 Ring Program!
The moment when the difference between Speight Jenkins and Glynn Ross became apparent!
“Gloomy captain, go on land; seek a faithful woman’s hand! Another seven years rush by; another woman soon must die.”
The first Wagner production at Seattle Opera!
Explore the 1978 Ring Program!
Watch Director’s Talk Video with Peter Kazaras
Hear Asher Fisch conduct the TRISTAN Prelude!
Hear the bass-baritone who often sang Wotan in Seattle in the ’80s.
A new Brünnhilde headlined our second complete cycle.
R. M. Campbell’s obituary recaps the remarkable career of Glynn Ross.
The unforgettable opera that opened McCaw Hall!
Speight finds a new Siegfried–after the final dress rehearsal!
Leonie Rysanek’s unforgettable Seattle appearance!
The first time the world ended at Seattle Opera!
Explore the 2000/01 Das Rheingold, Die Walküre Program!
The final cycle produced by Glynn Ross.
Pete Olds’ quick-thinking saves the day.
Speight: “A remarkably easy RING!”
The first complete presentation of the imaginative Rochaix/Israel Ring 2.
A game of musical chairs ensued when several Ring singers switched parts.
Our first RING in McCaw Hall–and Greer Grimsley’s first Wotan.
Simon Estes was a strong Hagen, and Ute Vinzing joined our Ring for the first time as Brünnhilde.
The great Viennese soprano’s only Seattle appearance!
Explore the 2003/04 Parsifal Program!
Three-minute complilation of footage from the final dress rehearsal of 2009’s DAS RHEINGOLD.
Part one of our series previewing 2009 RING Cycle focused on the artists involved and their rehearsal process.
Explore the 2007/08 Flying Dutchman Program!
For Seattle Opera’s only production of this masterpiece, we projected titles above the stage for the first time.
Seattle Opera’s only production to date of Wagner’s sunny comedy.
From 2009 Ring cycle performances.
Explore the 1984/85 Tannhäuser Program!
Explore the 1989/90 Master-Singers of Nuremberg Program!
Edward Sooter made a great addition to our Ring cast at its fifth consecutive summer.
Listen to the voice of Seattle’s reigning king of the gods.
Hear Archie Drake sing Gunther–in English!
Hear the voice of Seattle Opera’s first Music and Education Director!
Explore the 1986 Ring Program!
A 1982 article about Glynn Ross and Seattle’s Ring.
Revival of the 1994 production directed by Stephen Wadsworth.
Hear the voice of Seattle’s original Ur-Mutter.
Explore the 1974/75 Ring Program!
Hear the winners of our International Wagner Competitions!
Explore the 1977 Ring Program.
Wagner’s rollicking sea yarn came to Seattle with a famous cast.
Speight remembers consecrating McCaw Hall with Wagner’s most Wagnerian opera.
The orchestra mourns the death of a fallen hero.
Explore the 1980 Ring Program!
Hear the mezzo who was Seattle’s original Queen of the Gods.
Explore the 2009 Ring Program!
Explore the 1976 Ring Program!
The award-winning performance in the first opera in the renovated McCaw Hall.
Explore the 1980/81 Tristan and Isolde Program!
Listen to Asher Fisch conduct overwhelming music from the first show in McCaw Hall!
A cast substitution with unexpected results.
Explore the 1994/95 Lohengrin Program!
Explore the 1982 Ring Program!
Hear the SIEGFRIED Riddle Scene–in English!
Speight remembers how supertitles came to Seattle Opera.
It’s love at first sight (and hearing!) when Seattle Opera meets Richard Wagner.
Speight gets the swan just the way he likes it!
Explore the 1983 Ring Program!
Johanna Meier and Alberto Remedios joined our cast this summer.
Hear the great Canadian tenor sing one of his most gorgeous roles.
Wagner’s mighty epic performed for–and by!–kids all over Washington State.
A serenade gone hilariously wrong!
Listen to excerpts from Seattle Opera’s English-language RINGS!
Watch Video: Music with Maestro Asher Fisch
Hear Seattle’s first malevolent Lord of the Ring.
Explore the 1972/73 Die Walküre Program!
Speight learns to listen to young people at final dress rehearsals.
Explore the 1984 Ring Program!
