Two female figures, in truth one and the same person, at odds with herself, in her continuous struggle with the Ring, yet full of passion and devotion for one goal: the stage, which is life.
Bernhard Lang/Michael Sturminger Brünnhilde Brennt: ein Spiel mit dem Feuer
at Friedrichsforum Bayreuth
Cast 2026
Hermine, Singer of Brünnhilde: Catherine Foster
1. Dramaturge, Helmwige, Wellgunde: Sooyeon Lee
2. Dramaturge, Waltraute, Woglinde: Tanja Christine Kuhn
3. Dramaturge, Schwertleite, Erda, Flosshilde: Nefeli Kotseli
Richard Wagner, Director: Joachim Goltz
Singer of Wotan: Mandla Mndebele
Singer of Alberich: Ks. Morgan Moody
Singer of Siegfried: Sungho Kim
Performed by Dortmunder Philharmoniker
The world premiere of “Brünnhilde brennt” (music by Bernhard Lang, libretto by Michael Sturminger) will be presented in concert in August 2026. The world premiere in a staged production is scheduled for the 2026/2027 season at the Dortmund Opera, directed by Neil Barry Moss, with dramaturgy by Daniel C. Schindler and set and costume design by Manfred Rainer and Hannah Rosa Oellinger.
Thanks to the tremendous dedication of everyone involved and the support of the Society of Friends of Bayreuth, visitors can enjoy a program of the highest artistic quality. Jonathan Stockhammer serves as music director.
Events
Friedrichsforum Bayreuth
Made possible by the Gesellschaft der Freunde von Bayreuth e. V.
In Co-production with
Supported by
the New Music Theatre Fund
NRW Kultur
Brünnhilde dreams. She is tormented by restless sleep, haunted by the fire encircling the Valkyrie’s rock – the very place where Wagner’s Ring, that eternal work, has confined her for all time, condemned to play the same sacrificial role again and again. She awakens – Hermine, the opera singer, drenched in sweat in her hotel room.
Two women – in truth, one and the same – at war with themselves in their endless struggle with the Ring, caught in eternal conflict with the other characters in Wagner’s pantheon of figures, and yet filled with passion and devotion to one goal alone: the stage, which is life. Brünnhilde burns.
In 2026, the year of its 150th anniversary, the Bayreuth Festival will once again present the world premiere of a commissioned work with “Brünnhilde brennt” – marking its 150th anniversary. Composer Bernhard Lang and librettist Michael Sturminger have created a dreamlike piece that invites audiences to reflect on the layers of reality and the ongoing struggle with our cultural inheritance. Brünnhilde brennt is a co-production between the Bayreuth Festival and Dortmund Opera – a company that, under the artistic direction of Heribert Germeshausen, has emerged in recent years as one of the leading institutions for contemporary Wagner interpretation outside Bayreuth, particularly through the festival format Wagner Kosmos.
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