Watching a new production of Wagner’s four-evening “Ring” cycle take shape over many months or even years has its rewards, but for those prepared to stay the course, there’s nothing like full immersion in the course of a single week. The February premiere of Götterdämmerung at Milan’s Teatro alla Scala impressed James Imam of the Financial Times as a fitting conclusion to the director David McVicar’s installments of the epic to date. McVicar’s chief strength, per Imam, has been “to entrust Wagner’s music with carrying the drama.” What with its sharply characterized stage action, fantasy-style imagery (swords, horned helmets, etc. ) uncluttered by symbolism, and striking colossal scenic elements (among them a rocklike human head), Imam writes, “The opera has rarely been so easy to follow.” The young British conductor Alexander Soddy, who received top marks at the Götterdammerung premiere for combined lucidity and passion, leads the first integral presentation of the McVicar “Ring” (March 1–7). The second cycle unfolds under the baton of Soddy’s erstwhile mentor Simone Young (March 10–15), and you know what they say about comparisons. Michael Volle (Wotan), Camilla Nylund (Brünnhilde), and Klaus Florian Vogt (Siegfried)—recently cheered in Zurich in the same roles—head the cast. Hojotoho! —Matthew Gurewitsch