Mascagni’s L’amico Fritz might be the perfect antidote to an unsuccessful reimagining of Götterdämmerung.  It’s short, uncomplicated, tuneful and nobody dies.  It’s a simple love story in which an Alsatian landowner, who is a confirmed bachelor, makes a bet with the local rabbi that he can’t find him a bride.  Then he falls hopelessly in love with the daughter of his tenant and they all live happily ever after.

Continue reading →