A decade ago, Fulham Opera was putting together its first Ring Cycle, ambitious in a slightly bonkers way, with all four of Wagner’s operas staged in a church with piano accompaniment. Now, in its new guise as Regents Opera, the company is doing it all again. This time, though, there’s an 18-strong orchestra, and the venue has been upgraded to the lofty and ornate hall of the Freemasons’ London HQ: this is one Rheingold in which the percussion of the Descent into Nibelheim can be played on the venue’s own anvil.
The hall also has an organ, which comes thunderously into its own in a few well-chosen moments in the conductor Ben Woodward’s arrangement of the music. It’s to the credit of Woodward – who keeps the music moving propulsively throughout – and his hard-working players that this leaner yet richly woven version works so well.
