December 30, 2009 - Swan Lake
The lack of posts this year does not mean that there was nothing I wanted to write about; I also have photos to post, so I’d like to attempt a kind of review of the year at some point. We’ll see. I’ll start with something more recent, however - an outing to Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake at Sadler’s Wells theatre just before Christmas.
Swan Lake, with Tchaikovsky’s beautiful score, has always been my favourite ballet. Matthew Bourne’s production is a modern retelling of the story which famously casts male dancers as the swans (though it is not, as sometimes incorrectly stated, an all male Swan Lake).  I had seen it on dvd, and jumped at the chance to see it live. It is intensely moving (few films will make me cry on repeated viewings, but this production on dvd does every time and the live version was no exception), but nevertheless there are plenty of humourous moments. The dvd is excellent, but the action becomes much clearer on the stage, and there were several bits of background action - often adding to the humour - which aren’t seen by the camera. The programme noted that there had been a number of changes since the dvd was filmed; these seemed to be in the details and the production in essence remained the same, however there were some moments that were changed and some that I did not remember seeing before.
The new cast also brought a different feel to the piece. The current run has a number of dancers in the principle roles, at this performance we saw Dominic North as a youthful Prince - he captured the yearning to escape from the dull routine of the court and the longing for affection. Jonathan Ollivier as the Swan / the Stranger superbly conveyed the power and potential fierceness of the swan tempered by his protectiveness and gentleness towards the prince, as well as the mysterious and almost savage charm of the Stranger. The Queen (I think we saw Nina Goldman) was also excellent and presented a moving conflict between suppressed love and distaste for physical contact with her son.
It is 14 years since the premiere of this production and, judging by the packed theatre, the revivals should continue for many years yet. I would certainly recommend seeing it.
More about the show at the official website: http://www.swanlaketour.com/
I’m so pleased for you that you saw Swan Lake, and Matthew Bourne’s production at that. I recall seeing a few minutes of it somewhere on tv, must have been from the DVD. Must have been interesting to see it live. I much prefer seeing a ballet on stage. As you say, things can be seen that cameras don’t pick up. The immediacy and atmosphere of a performance needs to be experienced live to be really appreciated I think.
Lovely Christmas present!
Comment by Carol — January 2, 2010 @ 9:53 pm