Accessorising the Ring

"Libretto! Enjoy the opera with a libretto!" Four for the price of one! (Hard-core dactyliophiles only--no pansy English translations here!)

Of course, if you like your culture a bit more pre-digested, try scarpia's summary of Siegfried. (No word on when condensations of the rest of the cycle will be available.) bunj's reaction to an earlier presentation of the same production will give you some idea of the staging. He also breaks down some of the major plot points of the cycle using slightly more pedestrian musical settings than old Wagner would've preferred.

For a neophyte's perspective on the whole mess, refer to rollick's recent adventures. You can start with the opera poll or jump right into the actual day-to-day entries. For a mediaevalist's view of the original sources, you could read these e-mails against an ugly background. Certainly easier than reading the original sources themselves!

Edited to add links to two more song parodies--the last of which is definitely not to be missed!