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Music
Pyotr Il'yich
Tchaikovsky
Choreography
Marius Petipa
and Lev Ivanov
Production
Anthony Dowell
Designs
Yolanda Sonnabend
Lighting
Mark Henderson
Conductor
Alexander
Ingram
CAST
Odette/Odile
Zenaida Yanowksy
Prince
Siegfried
Roberto Bolle
The
Princess
Elizabeth
McGorian
An Evil
Spirit,
Von Rothbart
William Tuckett
The
Tutor
Alastair
Marriott
Benno
Gary Avis
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The
Royal Ballet at
The Royal Opera House
Covent Garden
22nd
Dec 2004 - 25th Jan 2005 |
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As the
most celebrated and mythical
of ballets (and a fantastic
crowd-pleaser), 'Swan Lake'
demands regular programming
by large companies with the
size and resources to stage
it properly. Of all the classics,
it is the one most frequently
reimagined (one thinks immediately
of Matthew Bourne's infamous
all-male version currently
at Sadlers Wells) and, like
any example of excellence,
productions of it which depart
too far from the original
enchanting concept, are judged
harshly. 'Swan Lake' is a
ballet that is dear to many
hearts.
Restaged here by the Royal
Ballet as part of their 2004-2005
winter season, Anthony Dowell's
1987 production is a sumptuous
and dramatic retelling of
the tragic love between the
swan queen Odette and the
noble Prince Siegfried. Dowell
meticulously researched the
original four-act production
by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov
and has reinstated parts of
the 1895 choreography that
are rarely performed.
However, his production is
untrue to the famous classicism
of the piece. For many purists,
the biggest travesty is perhaps
Dowell's decision to forgo
the iconic (and unforgiving)
short white tutus in favour
of longer, ragged bell-shaped
tutus which, although wonderfully
downy, are reminiscent of
sylphs or willis rather than
swans in traditional ballet
vocabulary. It's a petty point
to make, but is symptomatic
of Dowell's much more romantic
approach to the story: his
notable softening of the swans'
line and gesture in the two
almost abstract 'white' scenes
by the lakeside (Acts II and
IV, choreographed by Ivanov),
and his surrendering to the
decadence and imperialism
of fin-de-siecle Russia in
the peasant and court scenes
(Acts I and III, choreographed
by Petipa).
That said, this is a truly
exquisite production and,
as you'd expect, loses none
of the drama or pathos for
its romantic approach. As
the lovestruck Prince Siegfried,
Roberto Bolle was the ideal
prince: tall, dark and devastatingly
handsome with a carriage of
his body that was both sensitive
and regal. That he danced
with a grace, dynamism and
expression achieved by few
male principals only made
him more mesmerising. His
solos were consistently faultless,
his leaps and turns accomplished,
and he was a generous and
supportive partner in the
challenging pas de deux work.
In the dual role of Odette/Odile,
Zenaida Yanowksy was breathtaking.
Hers was a glacial and otherworldly
- and, in this sense, typically
Russian - swan queen, a figure
of great beauty and anguish
under the spell of the wicked
Von Rothbart. Her initial
pas de deux with Siegfried
was achingly beautiful; a
duet punctuated by lingering,
suspended balances in arabesque
and sublime partner work.
Similarly, the final pas de
deux (in which Odette and
Siegfried are reunited after
his inadvertent betrayal of
her with the evil Odile) was
a display of heart-stopping
grace and exquisite technique.
Yanowksy's greatest quality
as a dancer is without doubt
the superb expressiveness
and fragility of her upper
body - her sinewy, undulating
arms, her strong but supple
back, and a beautiful carriage
of the head - used to wonderful
effect as the swan queen.
The one disappointment was
the 'white swan' solo in Act
II when Yanowsky's dancing
was somewhat less assured,
lacking the strength to master
completely the notoriously
difficult steps and at times
misjudging the timing of the
music slightly. It is also
during technically demanding
passages such as these that
Yanowsky places emotion momentarily
on a backburner.
In the role of Von Rothbart's
deceitful daughter Odile,
however, Yanowsky came alive,
dancing with virtuosity and
verve, and a steely resolve
that belied her mission to
make the clueless Siegfried
swear undying love to her.
Her execution of the 'black
swan' solo at the ball in
Act III was excellent; she
attacked the steps with dynamism,
strength and fierce, flashing
eyes and completed the 32
fouettés effortlessly.
In many ways, Yanowsky's Odile
outshone her Odette, but she
navigated the difference in
characterisation with great
skill and the requisite change
in style and expression.
The two leads were helped
by a strong supporting cast
- a magnificent, amphibious
Von Rothbart in particular
- and a polished corps de
ballet. 'Swan Lake' can be
quite a trying ballet for
the corps; it insists upon
an absolute uniformity of
movement and timing, and involves
long poses in exhausting positions.
On the whole, this ensemble
were very good, especially
so in Act IV when the bevy
of swans circle their mournful
queen defensively, lamenting
her fate with agitated arm
work and distressed shunts
in arabesque. Equally well-rehearsed
but quite different in feeling
were the foreign dances of
Act III - Spanish, Hungarian,
Neopolitan and Polish - which
were all danced with great
aplomb; these are essentially
showpieces and the Royal Ballet
embraced the opportunity to
show that they are as comfortable
with foreign character styles
as they are with classical
technique.
Further supporting Odette
and Siegfried was Tchaikovsky's
famous score with its quivering
strings and stirring crescendos,
conducted with great lyricism
by Alexandra Ingram. So too
the lavish set designs and
costumes conceived by Yolanda
Sonnebend which, in their
extravagant layering of velvet
upon tulle upon lace upon
sequins, had the power to
force a collective sigh from
the audience each time the
curtain rose on a new scene.
Although Dowell's production
is not the traditional Swan
Lake
of short tutus and high classicism,
it still has the power to
enrapture an audience, particularly
when the dancing, expression,
music, costume and set design
are as spellbinding as they
are in this production.
Nina Miall |
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