SYNOPSIS

In ancient times, the ruler of the gods—Wotan—committed a primeval crime against Nature by harvesting a branch of the world ash tree after drinking from its well of wisdom. He exchanged an eye for the branch, which forms the shaft of his mighty spear. Engraved on this spear are contracts that established his supreme authority.

As the curtain rises on this mythic world, three water nymphs are frolicking in the depths of the River Rhine while guarding a precious treasure. Their water games are interrupted by the arrival of a lonely dwarf, Alberich, seeking companionship. While the Rhine Daughters tease and torment Alberich and evade his attempts at seduction, they inadvertently reveal the secret power of the Rhinegold. Out of spite, Alberich curses love and steals the gold, which sets in motion a series of world-changing consequences.

In the celestial realm of the gods, Wotan dreams of Valhalla, a castle worthy of the gods and where warriors killed in battle spend their afterlife. Fricka, goddess of marriage and keeper of sacred vows, wakes her husband and reminds him of the terms of the construction agreement with the giants, Fasolt and Fafner, which includes the offer of Fricka’s sister Freia and her magic apples as collateral. When the giants arrive and request payment, Wotan haggles and demurs. Enraged by his failure to fulfill the terms of their contract, Fasolt and Fafner abduct Freia, promising to return her only after payment of a worthy ransom.

Wotan, accompanied by the enigmatic half-god Loge, descends into the subterranean depths of the dwarves’ kingdom Nibelheim to confront an embittered Alberich and secure payment for the giants. They first encounter his brother, Mime, who has been forced to work alongside the enslaved Nibelungs. Alberich emerges, gloating about his accumulated wealth, and is tricked into demonstrating the magical power of a helmet Mime has crafted. Wotan and Loge seize Alberich, the ring, the helmet, and the horde of gold, and together they leave Nibelheim.

The gods’ triumph is short-lived. Fricka beseeches Wotan to give up the accursed ring and all-knowing earth mother Erda warns of disastrous consequences, some of which transpire immediately.

As the gods cross the rainbow bridge towards Valhalla, the Rhine Daughters decry their loss —a harbinger of the reckoning to come, as the gods’ insatiable thirst for power sets in motion the cataclysmic forces of fate.