Sing Faster: The Stagehands' Ring Cycle (1999)

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Wagner's massive opera cycle Der Ring Des Nibelungen is examined from a fresh perspective in this documentary from director Jon Else -- from the point of view of the stagehands. The San Francisco Opera Company is performing the entire 17-hour "Ring" cycle over four nights, and a group of union stagehands ends up pulling a 85-hour week as they try to keep the show running smoothly. In between hauling scenery back and forth and making the special effects work, the crew members play cards, squabble among themselves and try to make sense of the opera's German-language story (as one member of the tech crew puts it, "Every time the gold changes hands, somebody ends up dead"). Sing Faster won honors in its premier showing at the 1999 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Director(s):: Jon Else

Format(s):: DVD, (View All Versions)

Synopsis of Sing Faster: The Stagehands' Ring Cycle

Theatrical Feature Running Time:: 56 mins

Director(s):: Jon Else

Writer(s):: Jon Else

Producer(s):: Jon Else

Categories:: Documentary

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Member Reviews (3)

	Cynthia R.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful

If you love opera you must see this film. It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see what really goes on behind the scenes. The complexity and magnitude of the scene changes are awe-inspiring, as is the obvious dedication of all involved, from the lowliest stagehand on up. After seeing this you will appreciate performances in an entirely new way. It would have been nice to hear more of the singing -- the bits you do hear are very impressive. But that's not really what this film is about.

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	Nick L.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful

It's a basic hour-long PBS documentary. It was an hour well-spent. Hearing the stage hands' take on the opera's plot was especially fun. "Alberich steals the gold from the Rhinemaidens, then there's 14 hours of singing until they get it back." One of the interviews likened the stage to a sailing ship. I'd finished reading a Horatio Hornblower book the previous week. Watching the hands work the set reminded me of all the novel's description of reefing sails, mainstays, etc., on the ship.

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