The Atlanta Opera announces Ring Festival 2029, two complete cycles of Wagner’s epic masterpiece directed by Tomer Zvulun (June 9–21, 2029)

Siegfried, Act I finale (photo: Courtesy of The Atlanta Opera)

(August 2026) — The Atlanta Opera – “a powerhouse in the Atlanta arts scene” (ArtsATL) and “one of the most exciting opera companies in America” (OperaWire) – announces Ring Festival 2029, two full cycles of performances of Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre in June 2029. Allowing audiences the rare opportunity to see the complete cycle within the span of a week, the festival will feature the celebrated productions of the four individual operas directed by Carl W. Knobloch, Jr. General & Artistic Director Tomer Zvulun that began in 2023 and concluded this past spring, and will be conducted by Principal Conductor Iván López Reynoso. The announcement comes on the heels of years of growth for the company and the tremendous success of the 2025–26 season, which saw record-breaking ticket sales and other milestones. TAO’s productions of Ring operas from the past four years are available to stream on the Atlanta Opera Film Studio.

Zvulun comments:

“Ring Festival 2029 is a transformative moment for us and for Atlanta. The first completely new Ring cycle in America in the 2020s. The first Ring ever presented in the American Southeast. And it’s happening in a city that has proven, time and time again, that it belongs on the world stage. This festival will bring international artists, music lovers, and cultural travelers to Atlanta from across the country and around the globe as we create a full civic celebration. From the Cobb Center to our new home on Atlanta’s Beltline, the Molly Blank Center for Opera and the Arts, we will create a cultural gathering place, where performances, surrounding events and the warmth of our city come together around one of music’s greatest masterworks. The art, the conversation, the community: this is what The Atlanta Opera was built for.”

Festival 2029 will welcome audiences from across the U.S. and abroad to Atlanta. Festival programming beyond the mainstage performances will place a special spotlight on TAO’s new facility, the Molly Blank Center for Opera and the Arts, currently under construction along the Atlanta Beltline corridor and scheduled to open in fall 2027.

Back-view rendering of the Molly Blank Center for Opera and the Arts (courtesy of The Atlanta Opera)

The Molly Blank Center will serve as a vibrant hub for festival events, including recitals, lectures, public conversations, community gatherings, and immersive artistic experiences designed to deepen engagement with Wagner’s epic work while introducing visitors to the company’s expanding artistic footprint. Situated on the thriving neighborhood connector, the Atlanta Beltline, the Molly Blank Center reflects The Atlanta Opera’s long-term vision of linking world-class artistic creation with the cultural and civic life of the city.

Raves for TAO’s past Ring productions

The individual productions of Wagner’s Ring cycle that marked the epic’s first staging in the region were received with glowing critical praise. After the production of Die Walküre, Opera Wire raved: “Of late, The Atlanta Opera (TAO) makes possible the nearly-impossible,” while Bachtrack observed: “The undertaking represents a milestone not just for the Southern company, but for American opera at the moment: it is the first new cycle to premiere after the pandemic, a signal that grand opera still has a place amid mounting industry-wide financial austerity.” Opera magazine found Zvulun’s production of Siegfried to be characterized by “modern stagecraft, especially cinematographic technique, and intense character interacting, reinforcing the emotional message of Wagner’s score,” and concluded: “This was an evening in the opera house that one feels grateful to have experienced.” Bachtrack’s review of Götterdämmerung put the entire achievement in perspective: “Searingly dramatic and with glorious orchestration to boot, it reached a close worthy of both Wagner’s massive conception and Atlanta Opera’s extraordinary undertaking.”

2026–27 season

On the way to this monumental project, The Atlanta Opera’s 2026–27 season offers seven productions ranging from war stories and psychological dramas to spiritual journeys, with a through-line of ultimate redemption through love The mainstage season opens with Zvulun’s iconic production of Kevin Puts and Mark Campbell’s Silent Night, which returns to Atlanta for the first time in ten years, telling a story about the World War I Christmas truce of 1914 that saw enemy combatants declare a momentary cease-fire and come together in recognition of commonality despite the violent conflict that otherwise consumed them (Nov 7–15). Read more about the rest of the season’s schedule here.

About The Atlanta Opera

Hailed by The New York Times for “Bringing Opera Back from the Brink,” The Atlanta Opera’s mission is to break the boundaries of opera to create exceptional experiences for audiences everywhere. Founded in 1979, the company has grown to achieve “Tier One” status (Opera America) in 2024 and works with world-renowned singers, conductors, directors and designers who seek to enhance the art form. Under the leadership of internationally recognized stage director and Carl W. Knobloch, Jr. General & Artistic Director Tomer Zvulun, The Atlanta Opera expanded from three to four mainstage productions at Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre and launched the acclaimed “Discoveries” event series, as well as the innovative 96-Hour Opera Project. In recent years, the company has been named among the “Best of” by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and was nominated in 2016 and 2023 for International Opera Awards. It also received ArtsATL’s 2019 Luminary Award for Community Engagement in recognition of its successful Veterans Program in partnership with the Home Depot Foundation, while the 2023 Governor’s Award for the Arts and Humanities recognized the excellence of the 96-Hour Opera Project. In addition, The Atlanta Opera was featured in a 2018 Harvard Business School case study about successful organizational growth, and Zvulun presented a TEDx Talk at Emory University titled “The Ambidextrous Opera Company, or Opera in the Age of iPhones.” During the COVID-19 pandemic, The Atlanta Opera was one of the only companies in the world to create a full, alternative season, consisting of no fewer than 40 live performances in two different outdoor venues, including a revolutionary custom-designed circus tent. The critically acclaimed productions and concerts were streamed in HD on the newly created “Atlanta Opera Film Studio” streaming platform, which continues to allow The Atlanta Opera to reach a global audience. National media coverage of the “pandemic season” included features in The Wall Street Journal and on PBS NewsHour. Reflecting on the company’s achievements over the past decade, Musical America declared, “The Atlanta Opera has arrived.” For more information, visit atlantaopera.org.

The Atlanta Opera: Ring Festival 2029

All performances take place in the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre

CYCLE ONE
Saturday, June 9, 2029 Das Rheingold
Sunday, June 10, 2029 Die Walküre
Tuesday, June 12, 2029 Siegfried
Thursday, June 14, 2029 Götterdämmerung

CYCLE TWO
Saturday, June 16, 2029 Das Rheingold
Sunday, June 17, 2029 Die Walküre
Tuesday, June 19, 2029 Siegfried
Thursday, June 21, 2029 Götterdämmerung

Production & Stage Direction: Tomer Zvulun
Conductor: Iván López Reynoso
Scenic & Projection Design: Erhard Rom
Costume Design: Mattie Ullrich
Lighting Design: Robert Wierzel
Wig & Makeup Design: Anne Nesmith
Live Action Director: Ran Arthur Braun