BAYREUTH, Germany (AP) — Richard Wagner likely would have appreciated the cutting-edge technology, if not the reaction. Scenery selected by artificial intelligence sparked boos at the 150th anniversary performance of Wagner’s Ring Cycle from an audience frustrated that software could integrate images but not drama. This image released by the Bayreuth Festival shows a dress rehearsal of Wagner's "Das Rheingold" from the AI-driven 150th anniversary production of the Ring Cycle at the Festspielhaus in Bayreuth, Germany on July 15, 2026. (Enrico Nawrath/Bayreuth Festival via AP)Curator Marcus Lobbes developed the concept with Nils Corte and dramaturge Andri Hardmeier, feeding computers about 1,000 images culled from the 15 prior Bayreuth Ring productions. He was approached in February 2023 to stage an AI Ring for the sesquicentennial by Katharina Wagner, a great-granddaughter of the composer and current festival director.