By Miglena Stoicheva

This evening, the Sofia Opera will show “Götterdämmerung”: the final opera of the “Der Ring des Nibelungen” tetralogy and the culmination of this year’s Wagner festival.

Wagner connoisseurs from all over the world have arrived this week in Sofia in order to witness the forging of the Bulgarian “Der Ring des Nibelungen”. Besides providing repertoire variance, Wagner turned out to be a winning marketing strategy for the Sofia Opera.

The theater not only often tours with Wagner’s operas but also attracts international audiences which wish to see and hear how Bulgarian singers perform Wagner.

Prof. Plamen Kartaloff, director of the Sofia Opera and Ballet:

“Why is the Wagner festival needed: firstly, for the Sofia Opera and secondly, for Sofia?”

It’s needed because it adds a different nuance of recognition for our country which is now truly comparable to the ones where the greatest opera theaters set “Der Ring des Nibelungen” as a regular part of their repertoire.

What’s more: with our consistency and persistence, we’re creating this tradition for Bulgaria.”

Evtim Miloshev, minister of culture: “I’m here most of all out of respect for the Sofia Opera and Ballet’s work, and personally: for prof. Kartaloff. I’m very impressed by the performance. I’m also impressed by the international presence: there were viewers from three different continents.”

Even though this is the final evening of “Der Ring des Nibelungen”, the festival continues. In the middle of June, the audience will be able to see the operas “Lohengrin” and “Tannhäuser”.

See more in Miglena Stoicheva’s live interview:

https://bntnews.bg/news/zavarshi-tazgodishnoto-izpalnenie-na-prastenat-na-nibelunga-1396056news.html