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Tchaikovsky: Swan Lake
Royal Russian Ballet,
Jamshed Bhabha Theatre, NCPA.
March 2018.
Tchaikovsky: Swan Lake
Royal Russian Ballet,
Jamshed Bhabha Theatre, NCPA.
March 2018.
Some classics are so representative of their genre
that it is impossible to think of either without recalling the other. In this,
“Swan Lake” is the quintessential ballet in the Russian classical tradition.
The image that it conjures, of ballerinas in white tutus representing maidens
turned into swans, has remained steadfast in our consciousness for more than a
century.
It is one of three fairy-tale ballets by Peter
Tchaikovsky, whose music is lyrical and impassioned, poignant and thrilling, symphonic
in its scope. The haunting “swan theme” is surely one of the most easily
recognisable pieces of music ever written, ubiquitous in its popularity.
The original version of the ballet is rarely performed.
Most productions are based on the 1895 revival by the Kirov Ballet, supervised
by Tchaikovsky’s brother after the composer’s death; and choreographed by
Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov, with additional music by the conductor Riccardo
Drigo. This revival also made changes in the story of the ballet.
The scenario currently performed is this: Prince
Siegfried, while hunting in the forest, comes across a lake with a group of
swans who turn into beautiful women, headed by their ‘swan queen’ Odette, with
whom he falls in love. She and her maidens have been cursed by the magician Von
Rothbart -- a spell which can only be broken through true love. The prince
promises to make her his own, if she will come to his palace the next day for a
celebration during which he will announce his choice of bride. But the magician
makes an appearance at the party with his daughter Odile, who has been made to look
exactly like Odette. She captivates the Prince, who swears his love to her. At
that time, Odette is seen fluttering at the window. The Prince, realising his
error, rushes to the lake, into which she jumps, killing herself. After a
battle with Rothbart, the Prince follows her, the spell is broken, the magician
dies and the swans become human; the Prince and Odette are seen united in the
hereafter.
In keeping with Soviet ideology, a new version was created
for the Kirov Ballet by Konstantin Sergeyev in 1950, based on the 1895 revival
but with a happy ending, in which Siegfried fights Rothbart and tears off his
wing, killing him. Odette is restored to human form; she and Siegfried are
happily united.
This production by the Royal Russian Ballet follows
the Sergeyev version, with a few alterations. There are a couple of surprising
additions, such as an extra variation for Odile; and the inclusion of the seldom
performed Russian Dance among the other “national dances” which make up the divertissement (show-pieces unrelated to
the story) in the palace scene. There are some minor cuts; but the beautiful
and melancholic Dance of the Swans at the beginning of the final act has also been
removed and this is a real loss, like some of the more daring and difficult
dance-movements (unforgettable to anyone who knows this ballet) which have been
omitted or simplified.
Not surprisingly, considering this is essentially a
touring company, the number of dancers has been downsized. Many of the
set-pieces have fewer dancers than usual; and sometimes the stage looks too
sparsely populated, for example, in the scene at the palace. Even so, the
dancing on the whole is more than competent. The corps de ballet seems to be made up of young, well-trained dancers
with sound, disciplined technique. Thus, the famous dance of the four cygnets
in Act 2 was executed with razor-sharp precision and in perfect unison; the Neapolitan
Dance was delivered with pizzazz by Arina Chumak and Alexei Bogutskiy; Yurii
Gregul stood out for his unbridled energy in the Spanish Dance; and the Russian
Dance was performed solo by Natalia Kazatskaia with great charm and delicacy.
Denis Tarasov as the Jester was agile and graceful,
though he missed some of the character’s impishness. The rest of the principals
have been double-cast, each set dancing on different days. Anatolii
Khandazhevskyi did what was required as the Prince, with decent if not
spectacular execution of scissor-leaps and other balletic demands, while Artem
Tymchuk as Rothbart was quite unremarkable in the earlier parts of his role but
came into his own during the final act, becoming a creature of real power and
menace.
Any performance of “Swan Lake” depends ultimately on
the prima ballerina who has to portray both Odette and Odile. It is a well-known
fact that it is extremely difficult for any dancer to do equal justice to both,
as they are in extreme contrast. So was Olga Kifyak’s level of accomplishment.
Her dancing of Odette could best be described as grammatical. There was cold
classicism and an aristocratic mien with an expressionless face…but where was
the vulnerability, fragility and, ultimately, heartbroken despair? Her Odile,
on the other hand, was near-electrifying. The dancer suddenly seemed to come to
life, investing this character with the sly sexuality that was needed; and was
able to dispatch the role’s notoriously demanding choreography, including the
famous 32 fouettés (turns) with
aplomb.
This production uses a pre-recorded soundtrack, most
of which is played by the orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre (home of the Kirov
Ballet) and conducted by Valery Gergiev. Thus there are inevitable compromises,
since a live orchestra isnt present to tailor the music symbiotically with the
dancing. Moreover, the sound-levels appear to have been ‘normalised’ so that
softer passages (for example, the violin solo in the pas de deux) seem unnaturally loud. And there is a fatiguing excess
of bass…though this could well have been a contribution of the sound-system at
the Jamshed Bhabha Theatre. Speaking of which, its stage looked cramped, in
spite of the fewer than usual dancers involved.
The set is old-fashioned (which is not necessarily a
bad thing!) using painted backdrops to represent the palace gardens, the lake
and a hall in the palace. The initial impression is favourable, as the wings on
either side of the stage and the flies at the top are also replaced with
painted images of pillars and an ornate ceiling. However, these remain during
the scene at the lake and thus become extremely incongruous. The lighting
leaves much to be desired, since is rudimentary and unable to convey much
atmosphere; the appearance of Odette at the window lacks the requisite magic.
The costumes, though, are quite pretty, authentic and entirely appropriate.
In sum, though one may want to commend Navrasa Duende
for their initiative in organising this India tour of “Swan Lake”, one cannot
help wishing for more…especially when one considers the astronomical
ticket-prices! With more accomplished principal dancers, a full-sized corps, a live orchestra, better sets and
lighting, this would have been something special. Perhaps next time?
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