Scene 1 - On the bed of the Rhine

In the beginning there is Nature.

The Nature appears as a smooth and uninterrupted flowing motion.

From Nature's endless darkness emerges the mighty Rhine. The steady stream of the river is all encompassing.

The three Rhine-daughters appear, Woglinde, Wellgunde and Flosshilde. They swim around playfully.

Flosshilde is the most conscientious of the three. She reminds her sisters that their plight is to guard the Rhinegold!

The Nibelungs are a subterranean, hard-working people. The Nibelung Alberich appears at the bottom of the Rhine.

The sight of the Rhine-daughters who are swimming playfully around spellbinds him. When they see Alberich they tease him intensely. And yet they pretend to be attracted by the dwarf. One sings more seductively than the other, but in the end all three reject him. Finally, the Rhine-daughters mock him and laugh at his pain and despair.

The Nibelung does not belong in the Rhine. The slippery bottom makes him lose his footing and the humidity makes him sneeze. Neither is he able to catch hold of the nymphs. Finally Alberich is enraged and frustrated and he hunts the three Rhine-maidens. He threatens to take one of them by force, if they will not surrender voluntarily. But he is not at home in the Rhine, and they easily evade him.

Suddenly, the morning rays of the sun illuminate the Rhinegold. The Gold starts to spread a golden glimmer.

The Rhine-daughters swim joyously around the Gold and bask in the light of its luster.

Alberich cannot understand what is so splendid about this gold. The Rhine-maidens then tell him that a Ring may be forged from the Gold and that the one that carries this Ring may have unlimited power and wealth.

But they add: This will never happen, because only the one who forswears love will be able to take the Gold and forge a Ring with this Gold. The Rhine-daughters are completely certain that nobody will ever do this, and least of all the love-hungry Alberich.

But they are wrong: mad with despair and enraged after the Rhine-daughters' mockery, Alberich forswears and curses all love and he steals the Rhinegold and flees before the shocked Rhinemaidens can take any action.

Now he reasons that even without love, he may forcibly satisfy his lust. He renounces love with a terrible oath, steals the Gold and disappears. The three Rhine-daughters despair of their loss. Alberich is now able to forge the Ring of power.

Scene 2 - An open space on a mountain summit

Fricka (the goddess of marriage and Wotan's wife), wakes Wotan (Odin, the chief of the gods) who dreams of power and honor. He had hired two Giants Fasolt and Fafner to build him and the other gods a mighty fortress, Walhall. It was completed while Wotan slept. He now praises the new fortress.

Following the cunning Loge's advice, he promised the giants the goddess Freia, (Fricka’s beautiful, younger sister) as payment. Freia is the goddess of love and youth. In Freia's garden, apples grow, apples that secure the gods' eternal youth.

Fricka is very worried about her sister and accuses Wotan of lust for power in wanting to build the new fortress.

At this point Freia rushes desperately into the scene, pursued by the giants Fasolt and Fafner.

The giants request their wages as agreed: They want to take Freia to their home. Now Wotan is in a terrible situation. Freia was actually part of the deal with the giants, an agreement that is protected by Wotan's RunesSpear.

But of course, Wotan does not intend to let the giants take Freia away. He explains that the agreement was only for jest - the giants must propose another pay. The giants keep to the promise, though, and they point out that Wotan rules through the power of his treaties and that he therefore must keep these himself.

Freia's brothers, Donner and Froh, will save her by force, but this Wotan prevent.

Wotan expects Loge to soon appear and save him from the pinch. Loge is the roaming and changeable demigod of fire and Wotan's smart advisor. Loge is the only character in the Ring that appears both as a person and as an element.

Just then Loge appears in a flickering flame.

Loge had two different missions: First, to check Walhall for faults. The intention of Wotan was that such faults would give the gods a reason not to pay the agreed wages, Freia. Loge's report is short and is quickly delivered: Walhall is flawless. Loge's second mission was to try and find something to replace Freia as payment, something the Giants would be satisfied with. This has not been very easy. Loge has traveled around the whole world - everywhere a woman's love is appreciated above all.

However, he does report of one exception. Loge tells the story of Alberich - how Alberich has renounced love, stolen the Rhinegold and forged a Ring of power. The Giants also hear this story and decide that they may take the gold of the Nibelung as a substitute for Freia, if Wotan can supply it to them. Loge reports that the Rhinedaughters want their gold back. Wotan too wants the Ring and the gold for himself. His opinion is that this would secure eternal power and safety.

As Wotan hesitates, the giants take Freya away and demand their payment be delivered before sunset. The gods suddenly feel weak: Loge knows that this is because Freya normally gives them Golden Apples which bestow eternal youth upon them.

Loge suggests that Wotan should take the Ring from Alberich, since it does not belong to him: steal from the thief. Left with little choice, Wotan agrees to try to win Alberich's treasure. He tells Loge to lead him to Nibelheim, but not through the river Rhine.

Wotan and Loge leaves for Nibelheim. There, they will try to steal Alberich's gold so that the Gods may release Freia and get their lost youth back. On their way down to Nibelheim the sound of lots of hammering dwarves is heard.

Scene 3 - In Nibelheim

Alberich has forced his brother, Mime, forge a magic helmet called the Tarnhelm. The one who carries the Tarnhelm and knows the magic words, can make himself invisible or transform himself into another being.

Mime tries to keep Tarnhelm to himself, but Alberich brutally takes hold of the helmet. The now invisible Alberich terrorizes Mime and the other Nibelungs.

Alberich leaves, just as Loge and Wotan arrive. They listen to Mimes complaints of Alberich's violence. Loge promises Mime that they will free all Nibelung dwarfs from Alberich's tyranny. Alberich arrives and becomes visible. He recognizes Wotan and Loge immediately and asks them why they are there. He is told that the gods have heard of his new might and wanted to see if the rumors were true.

Alberich considers himself to be the future ruler of the world, and he predicts his own rule over Wotan and the Gods. Wotan is provoked and moves to strike down Alberich with his Spear. Loge manages to calm Wotan down. With flattery and hypocrisy Loge tricks Alberich into demonstrating the magic power of Tarnhelm.

Loge asks Alberich to demonstrate something really frightening. Alberich transforms himself into a giant dragon. Loge and Wotan feign fear.

They then ask Alberich if he could transform himself into something tiny in order to evade his enemies. Alberich doesn't see the trick and turns into a toad. Loge tells Wotan to catch the toad: the gods seize the Tarnhelm and leave Nibelheim with Alberich as their captive.

Scene 4 - An open space on a mountain summit

Wotan and Loge have returned to the higher regions of the mountains with their prisoner, Alberich. Wotan demands that Alberich pay them all his treasures as ransom before he can be freed. Using his magic Ring, Alberich summons the Nibelungs, which bring the treasures.

The Nibelungs again disappear and Alberich demands to be set free. Wotan claims the Tarnhelm as well. Alberich is furious, but tries to calm himself with the knowledge that Mime can forge a new magic helmet for him. But then Wotan demands the Ring as well. Alberich refuses to give up the Ring, but Wotan forcefully tears it away from Alberich's finger. The furious Alberich now feels that his life has lost all meaning.’

Loge frees Alberich. Crushed, Alberich places a powerful curse on the ring: whoever posses the Ring will be its slave and is doomed, he will be envied and hated by others - everyone will covet the Ring. With these words he leaves. Wotan ignores his words.

Alberich has disappeared, and the gods are generally quite satisfied with what Wotan has achieved. Fasolt and Fafner return with Freia. Her presence quickly restores the youth of the gods.

The giants return with Freya. The Giants, especially Fasolt, will really miss Freia. To ease their loss, they demand enough gold to cover Freia completely and hide her from their sight. All the gold must be used in order to achieve this, and even the Tarnhelm is necessary - to cover her hair. But Fasolt is still able to glimpse Freia's eye through a crack in the pile of gold. Fafner rightly points out that Wotan's Ring is exactly right to fill the crevice. Wotan stubbornly refuses to let the Ring go. The conjectured promise of power that is associated with the Ring makes Wotan want to keep it for himself. The Giants are not willing to accept this, and they start to leave with Freia. Just then, bathed in blue light, Erda, the earth goddess and mother, appears from the ground!

Erda implores Wotan to give up the Ring. She also declares that the end of the gods (Götterdämmerung) is near.

Erda's message has made a powerful impression on Wotan, and he finally gives the Ring to the Giants. Freia is released and the gods are reunited, apparently in happiness. Wotan is left with a new longing - he needs to see Erda again...

The Giants immediately start quarreling over the golden treasure and the Ring. Fafner kills his brother Fasolt, and gets all the treasure. Seemingly Alberich's curse on the Ring is already working! The power of the curse horrifies Wotan.

The gods now intend to celebrate their apparent victory and they prepare to enter Walhall for the first time. After the late events, however, the mood is not exactly too bright. To clear the air Donner calls forth a storm. Lightning and thunder appears on his demand.

Froh follows suit and summons forth the rain. The rainbow forms a heavenly bridge for the gods to enter Walhall.

Wotan is uncertain with regard to what the future will bring. His hope is that the fortress will keep the gods safe and secure.

Wotan is struck by a new thought - and what this thought is will not be evident until the next opera, Die Walküre.

As the gods are walking over the Rainbow Bridge to Valhalla, Loge stays behind and remarks to himself that the gods are merely hastening to their own end. He contemplates the day that he can turn back into his elemental form - fire and burn everything.

In the distance, singing can be heard: the Rhinemaidens mourn their lost gold. Wotan bids Loge to tell them to be silent - but they won't be silenced. The gods ignore the Rhinemaidens and enter Valhalla.

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