Demareus Cooper as Erda, Mother Earth, warns that the coveted golden ring will bring the destruction of the gods in Opera Theatre's "Rhinegold." Click photo for larger image. Previous Story: Opera Review: Scaled-down 'Ring' stays true to original

A masterpiece is measured as much by its effect at full strength as how it withstands other treatments. Richard Wagner created his 18-hour "Der Ring des Nibelungen" with such inner vitality that even a condensed version sung in English is potent, even despite flaws.

In a production of the second of the four operas, "The Valkyrie," Saturday night at the Byham Theater, different aspects of the epic opera came to the fore. Opera Theater director Jonathan Eaton used a reduced version by Jonathan Dove (in a translation by Andrew Porter) to center the action more on the intimate relationships of the main characters. He did so by casting singers who could act, and it paid off in the rapport between Wotan (Charles Robert Austin) and Brunnhilde (Deidra Palmour Gorton). While these struggled to capture the vocal heroics -- Austin's dark voice occasionally lost focus, and Gorton's was too thin for the role -- their mutual tenderness was deftly developed. And when's the last time someone carried a Brunnhilde, as Austin did to lay Gorton on her rock?

This was the case, too, for Hunding (Monte Jaffe) and Siegmund (Daniel Snyder). Both played their parts with striking realism but pushed their voices to the limit to master the lines. Jessie Raven as Fricka and Anna Singer as Sieglinde fared better, displaying the vocal heft and control to sing this music. Singer in particular had that extra gear Wagner demands in any size production. The Valkyries numbered only four -- Diba Alvi, Charlene Canty, Kimberly Steinhauer and Elizabeth Saunders -- but they made up for it with spear-thrusting action and alarm-like singing.

Part of the problem was Eaton chose these singers specifically because they wouldn't have to sing over a full Wagnerian orchestra. Dove's wonderful re-orchestration of the score imbues it with the same color at a lower volume. But then a combination of Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and Opera Theater heads decided to double many of the lines, something Dove didn't intend. The result was a bigger sound after all, one that often drowned out the singers. Better to stay with Wagner's orchestration and pull out a few players than to insert more into a reduced version. Problems begat problems as the singers struggled to convey the words -- without supertitles the longueurs were unbearable. If you aren't able to understand the text, you might as well hear it in the original German.

On top of it all the PSO was markedly inconsistent, following one gorgeous phrase with one of poor ensemble. Conductor Anthony Negus kept the singers sharply in line but did not hold the orchestra in good balance. Everything was certainly adequate, but we expect more from the PSO.

Eaton's brilliance went a long way to compensating and making for a still enjoyable evening, especially for those who haven't seen the full "Ring." On a tight budget, he worked magic of his own with the fantastic set and costumes, designed with Danila Korogodsky. Mummy-like statues surrounded the center ring of action, with a skull-encrusted sphere floating above to represent Valhalla. The conception was simultaneously traditional and preternatural: Wotan had a spear, but it was metal forged with a sleek double helix. Siegmund's sword consisted of rods soldered together in a fascinating skeletal design.

It was Eaton's direction that bridged the gap from mini to major "Ring." By the time the re-structured second act was under way (with cuts, "The Valkyrie" ran about three hours instead of five), I was engrossed. Particularly, Eaton's humanization of the gods worked superbly. My hair stood up when he had Brunnhilde run into Wotan's arms for a final forgiveness for aiding Siegmund. Wagner prevails again.