Opera Australia’s Valkyrie talks about the highs, the lows, the hojotohos and how Anna Wintour inspires her interpretation.

Do you remember the first time you came across Wagner’s Ring?

I wasn’t lucky enough to be one of those children who grew up with a parent listening to it, but I remember coming across the famous Patrice Chereau and Pierre Boulez 1976 Bayreuth version. I remember seeing Gwyneth Jones sing the Todesverkündigung and I thought, “Oh my goodness… Oh my! This is gorgeous!” And then I just sort of shelved it until I did a university course on the Ring, and I remember thinking, “Yeah, OK, this is the real deal.”

Obviously Gwyneth Jones in particular struck you. How did you feel about the character at that point? What was your emotional response to the role? 

I think the young part of me really identified with her innocence. Particularly in the Walküre, when she doesn’t quite understand what she’s done wrong and she cannot do anything other than what she’s done. It resonated with me at that time in my life, because I felt the same. I had that youthful, innocent identification with someone who was just doing their best. And then of course, as...