'Ring' parties, parodies and other related events

Got "Ring" fever? The Seattle Opera's epic production of Richard Wagner's four-opera "Der Ring des Nibelungen" starts Sunday and continues all month, but tickets are hard to come by. (Read our preview Sunday in NW Arts & Life.)

Still, there's plenty to keep "Ring" afficionados with and without tickets happy — before, between and after performances. The merely curious can also find something to enjoy.

Ticket information, when required, can be found at www.seattleopera.org, except where noted.

Radio

"Ring" Preview with Speight Jenkins: The last of Seattle Opera general director Jenkins' talks about different aspects of the cycle broadcasts at 7 tonight on Classical KING-FM 98.1.

"Ring" Broadcast: KING-FM will present the "Ring" cycle in its entirety. Recorded live at McCaw Hall, and hosted by Jenkins.

• "Das Rheingold" — 7 p.m. Aug. 15

• "Die Walküre" — 7 p.m. Aug. 22

• "Siegfried" — 7 p.m. Aug. 29

• "Götterdämmerung" — 6 p.m. Sept. 5

Video

Backstage camera: Seattle Opera patrons can peek into backstage madness during intermissions (and before the curtain in the case of "Das Rheingold") by stopping at any of eight television sets in McCaw Hall offering glimpses of behind-the-scenes action.

"Confessions of a First-Time Operagoer": 19-year-old Cassidy Quinn Brettler hosts an engaging, streaming video series in which she learns about the "Ring" from the inside out (www.seattleopera.org).

The Road to Valhalla: Another online series that covers all aspects of preproduction for the "Ring" (www.seattleopera.org).

Online

Walküre Views: Audience members share experiences through this special program, available through computer kiosks at Fisher Pavilion and McCaw Hall. Users create personalized, postcardlike e-mails or can post directly to Facebook.

"Ring" Blog: Various contributors cover developments in preproduction (www.seattleopera.org).

Twitter: Include hash tag #SeattleOperaRing in your Twitter tweets and Seattle Opera will post your comments on its Web site.

Lectures/Q&As

Exploring the Ring: In-depth, three-hour seminars for each opera, all beginning at 10 a.m., and hosted by Jenkins, at Fisher Pavilion; $25.

• "Das Rheingold" — Sunday, and Aug. 17 and 25

• "Die Walküre" — Monday, and Aug. 18 and 26

• "Siegfried" — Wednesday and Aug. 20 and 28

• "Götterdämmerung" — Aug. 14, 22, 30.

"Ring" Tech Talk: Technical director Robert Schaub discusses stage magic and technical wizardry, 10-11:30 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 21 and 29, Fisher Pavilion; $15.

Overtures to the Opera: Education artistic administrator Jonathan Dean hosts a brief overview of the evening's opera, at 5:30 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 17 and 25, and at 4:30 p.m. on all other performance days; $8.

Post-show Q&A with Speight Jenkins: Following every performance of "Die Walküre," "Siegfried" and "Götterdämmerung" (none following performances of "Das Rheingold"); free.

Rheingold Revelry: Champagne reception and late dinner following each performance of "Das Rheingold," hosted by Jenkins; $200-$300 (ticketholders only).

Parody

"Das Barbecü": Seattle Opera commissioned this giddy sendup of the "Ring," transposing Teutonic action to the wide open spaces of Texas, playing through Aug. 29 at ACT Theatre; $10-$37.50 (www.acttheatre.org).

Symposia

Portland Opera artistic administrator Clare Burovack hosts three panels featuring Wagner scholars. All symposia 10 a.m.-3 p.m. at Fisher Pavilion; $70 per event.

• Symposium I: Participants include Martin Bernheimer, correspondent for Opera magazine; Agustín Blanco-Bazán, music correspondent for Bayreuth Festival; Tuesday.

• Symposium II: Author Stewart Spencer; William Berger, author and radio producer for the Metropolitan Opera; Aug. 19.

• Symposium III: Barry Millington, London Evening Standard music critic; Washington Post architecture and culture critic Philip Kennicott; Aug. 27.

Et cetera

Laser Ring: Jenkins' favorite selections from the "Ring" are set to a laser show. Doors open at 6 p.m. Aug. 13, Pacific Science Center's Laser Dome, 200 Second Ave N., Seattle; $10.

Visual arts: Seattle Opera commissioned five "Ring" paintings by artist David Kreitzer. All of them, plus some of Kreitzer's other works, can be seen in McCaw Hall and Fisher Pavilion this month.

Tom Keogh: tomwkeogh@yahoo.com

Information in this article, originally published August 7, was corrected August 10. Overtures to the Opera is not a free event. Admission is $8. In addition, we just learned of two changes in the Symposia. Symposium III will still feature music critic Barry Millington of the London Evening Standard, but Washington Post architecture and culture critic Philip Kennicott will appear instead of Washington Post critic Anne Midgette. The Laser Ring will include Speight Jenkins' favorite Ring selections, but the program will not include any live commentary.