Latest news with #SwanLake
The Guardian
a day ago
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Ballet Preljocaj's Swan Lake review – dystopian twist sucks the breath out of you
Swan Lake isn't one of those stories that connects hard with current events or the world around it. You can say much the same for ballet itself. As a form, it usually doesn't have much to say. Ballet Preljocaj's production, which debuted in France in 2020, is something of an exception to the rule. Making its Australian premiere within days of Woodside receiving the federal government's (election-delayed) green light to extend the life and colossal climate impact of its North West Shelf gas project until 2070, and the Woodside boss Meg O'Neill's clumsy attempt to shift responsibility to supposedly Temu-addicted gen Z consumers, this staging from has a bit of a kick to it. A Swan Lake for the ecocide era, if you like. It's not the first reworking of Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov's 1895 classic, of course. Choreographers including Alexei Ratmansky, Matthew Bourne (his famous all-male Swan Lake) and Mats Ek have all ruffled the feathers of this tutu favourite. Here though, Angelin Preljocaj manages to entirely rework the choreography while honouring the narrative spine of the original and some of its structure. He doesn't throw the cygnets out with the lake water. For music, he draws principally on the Tchaikovsky score (played here in this QPAC exclusive season by the Queensland Symphony Orchestra under the sensitive baton of Johannes Fritzsch) cut with extracts from Tchaikovsky's Second and Fourth Symphonies and dark-toned slabs of electronica and EDM by the French studio 79D. Fans of the original will not find the story hard to follow. Here, the royal court is dystopian-corporate but the broad sweep of the story still has a young Prince Siegfried (Antoine Dubois on this occasion, alternating the role with Leonardo Cremaschi) chafing against expectation and falling for Odette (Théa Martin/Mirea Delogu), a woman who has been transformed into a swan by the sorcerer Rothbart (Redi Shtylla/Elliot Bussinet). In this version, Rothbart is a rapacious property developer whose city-building scheme is eagerly supported by Siegfried's wealthy parents, who play a much larger part in the drama than more traditional versions. Siegfried has an exceptionally tender and close relationship with his mother, for example, and his father appears to be in bed (sometimes literally) with Rothbart. Early on, plans for the transformation of the kingdom are waved around in paper form. A trolley is wheeled on bearing an idealised model of the proposed venture. Neither makes a visceral impact, it must be said. Later, however, huge monochromatic digital projections by Boris Labbé start to loom large, filling the space with images of rising city skylines, stock market trends, excavators and, eventually, an industrial plant with a throbbing life of its own – one that spells a grim death for Odette and her swan kind. Preljocaj's athletic choreography is full of swagger, strength and sass, and does not incorporate any of Petipa's dreamy original sequences. But, for lovers of Swan Lake, there are plenty of beautiful lines and bird-like movements, particularly in the white swan sections. The women/swans sometimes embody the whole bird stretching their own necks into beautiful arched shapes, and at other times use their arms as swan necks with hands for heads. The high-impact ensemble routines echo some of the set pieces of the Petipa original, including its court scenes. The Dance of the Little Swans gets a winking update with pelvic wiggles and a sharp weaving of the dancers' arms. Siegfried and Odette deliver an audience-pleasing romantic pas de deux with inventive lifts. There's no interval between the 'white' and 'black' acts of the story. Swan Lake plays straight-through for two hours and its 26-strong cast don't get much downtime. Preljocaj's choreography looks demanding with its rapid switching between planes, knifing arms and legs and intricate unison work. The women perform barefoot in short, loose dresses; the men wear suits and pumps (with leather trousers for the bad guys). The highly gendered prettiness and prissiness we associate with Swan Lake is rinsed out. Everyone looks strong, athletic and grounded. From the fourth act, a febrile energy starts to take hold, especially when the swans react en masse to Siegfried's betrayal. The final image is a striking one, as Siegfried searches for the dying Odette among the twitching, writhing bodies of her kind, all poisoned by the obscenely pumping industrial plant that now surrounds them. Rather than leaving you breathless, this bleak ending sucks the air out of you. Swan Lake is performed in the Lyric Theatre, Queensland Performing Arts Centre until 7 June. Watch the production for free on Digital Stage from 6pm, Friday 13 June to 6pm, Sunday 15 June
The Age
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Age
When fossil fuels pollute Swan Lake: Provocative ballet opens in Brisbane
The production of Swan Lake by the French company Ballet Preljocaj has been acclaimed for its beautiful images and choreography, but its creator is having none of that. 'I'm not interested just to do beautiful things,' Angelin Preljocaj said. 'Art is not just to be beautiful – it has to talk about humanity, and what happens in our world. 'And the idea is to put Swan Lake in the context of the climatic problem.' Preljocaj was speaking in Brisbane ahead of the opening of his production, which has an exclusive season as part of the QPAC International Series. The series brings world-famous performing arts companies such as the Bolshoi Ballet and the Teatro alla Scala exclusively to Queensland, bypassing Sydney and Melbourne. Arts Minister John-Paul Langbroek said the series had injected more than $32 million into the Queensland economy since its inception in 2009. The Ballet Preljocaj visit represents the restart of the series after COVID. First performed in 1877 and proclaimed a failure, Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake – about a prince, Siegfried, who falls in love with a woman, Odette, cursed by a magician to turn into a swan by day – would go on to become the most popular and iconic ballet in the canon.
Sydney Morning Herald
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Sydney Morning Herald
When fossil fuels pollute Swan Lake: Provocative ballet opens in Brisbane
The production of Swan Lake by the French company Ballet Preljocaj has been acclaimed for its beautiful images and choreography, but its creator is having none of that. 'I'm not interested just to do beautiful things,' Angelin Preljocaj said. 'Art is not just to be beautiful – it has to talk about humanity, and what happens in our world. 'And the idea is to put Swan Lake in the context of the climatic problem.' Preljocaj was speaking in Brisbane ahead of the opening of his production, which has an exclusive season as part of the QPAC International Series. The series brings world-famous performing arts companies such as the Bolshoi Ballet and the Teatro alla Scala exclusively to Queensland, bypassing Sydney and Melbourne. Arts Minister John-Paul Langbroek said the series had injected more than $32 million into the Queensland economy since its inception in 2009. The Ballet Preljocaj visit represents the restart of the series after COVID. First performed in 1877 and proclaimed a failure, Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake – about a prince, Siegfried, who falls in love with a woman, Odette, cursed by a magician to turn into a swan by day – would go on to become the most popular and iconic ballet in the canon.
Irish Examiner
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Examiner
Wedding of the Week: Ukrainian and Irish traditions blended in humanist ceremony
Love overcame language barriers as guests congratulated Maryna Pidhorna and David Connolly after a humanist ceremony that blended Ukrainian and Irish traditions. The traditional 'rushnyk' [ritual cloth] from the bride's homeland featured as the couple exchanged vows in the Greenhills Hotel in Limerick city. Maryna, from Kyiv, and David, from Limerick, were wed by celebrant Billy Mag Fhloinn and held their reception in the same venue. Maryna Pidhorna and David Connolly. Pictures: Joe Diggins Photography 'It was absolutely fabulous, the unity of our cultures integrated within the ceremony was very special,' says the bride, a childcare assistant. Maryna and David, a carer, professional football coach and intermediary, first met on a night out in Tipperary town in February 2023. Maryna Pidhorna and David Connolly. Pictures: Joe Diggins Photography 'Things progressed to our dating regularly from there — cinema, a Ukrainian performance of 'Swan Lake' at the University of Limerick, dinner and dancing, travelling to beaches, wine and falling in love,' she says. David popped the question before the year's end. 'We got engaged on December 5, 2023, in the very first restaurant we dined out together, La Candela, in Tipperary town,' he says. Maryna Pidhorna and David Connolly. Pictures: Joe Diggins Photography Maryna had first visited Ireland as a Chernobyl child in the 1980s, staying in Co Cork. Fleeing war in Ukraine she returned to Blarney in 2022 with her sister and their young children, where she made many more friends, among them Kate Durrant and Val Kirby, before Maryna had to relocate to Limerick. Kate and Val were overjoyed when invitations to Maryna and David's wedding dropped through their letterboxes. Val Kirby and Kate Durrant with bride Maryna Pidhorna. 'As 'Chernobyl children', Maryna had been part of the Rest and Recuperation summer programme that brought Ukrainian children to Ireland to give them respite from the toxic fallout of the nuclear disaster,' says Kate. Three years ago, when Kate encountered Maryna, she saw a woman who swiftly 'put her own needs aside to offer her services in the local hospital as a translator, easing the burden on her fellow countrymen and women receiving treatment'. Maryna Pidhorna and David Connolly with Deanna, Zhenia and Tristan. Pictures: Joe Diggins Photography Maryna and her sister, she adds, 'enrolled their children in our local schools and clubs, helping out in any way they could', before housing constraints forced another move. 'It was a tough transition, not that they complained, but relocating their families to yet another school, and a new soccer club for Maryna's talented, and football-mad, teenage son, was another bump on their already rocky road,' says Kate. Maryna Pidhorna and Deanna Connolly. Pictures: Joe Diggins Photography 'We stayed in touch and were thrilled when she told us she had fallen in love, even more so when we received photographs of her new baby.' On her big day, the bride wore a glamorous Missacc gown and did her own makeup, with her hair styled by Limerick hairstylist Jess McGrath. The groom and his party bought their suits at Dave Mc's Menswear, Tipperary. David Connolly made his entrance with their sons Zhenia and Tristan. Pictures: Joe Diggins Photography For his entrance music, David chose the theme song of Ukrainian world boxing champion Oleksandr Usyk. 'David was accompanied by our two sons, Zhenia and Tristan,' says Maryna. Maryna Pidhorna and David Connolly. Pictures: Joe Diggins Photography 'My entrance music was the Ukrainian song Pal lal lal and I was accompanied by our daughter Deanna and my sister Larissa.' Maryna's mother, Galina, and David's dad, Andrew, were present, and the professional duo Niall and Louise, also relatives of the groom, provided the music. Maryna Pidhorna and David Connolly. Pictures: Joe Diggins Photography 'We had a fantastic mime performance by Mike and Richie with three female backup dancers that lit up the crowd,' says Maryna. Joe Diggins ( was behind the lens. Maryna Pidhorna and David Connolly. Pictures: Joe Diggins Photography The couple, who will live in Knocklong, Co Limerick, honeymooned in Portugal. If you would like your wedding featured in Weekend email
Press and Journal
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Press and Journal
Review: Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake simply sensational as it takes to Aberdeen's HM Theatre
I vividly remember the first time I saw Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake, and I was convinced it was the best production I had ever witnessed on stage. And last night, as it took to the Granite City for its 30th anniversary tour, I became an even bigger believer. I am a huge ballet fan, especially for someone who stopped wearing a tutu when I was about 8. But nothing compares to the feelings this piece of art evokes from the audience. I'm not sure, but I do believe last night's performance was the first time I've ever experienced the audience audibly cheering at the end of act one. It is almost hard to put into words just how good this is. From the first haunting note to the final dramatic moment, it was a performance that utterly consumed me. This production broke new ground when it first premiered in 1995 by replacing the traditionally female swans with an all-male ensemble. Three decades on, that decision still feels revolutionary — not just for its boldness, but because it works so completely. The male swans bring a physicality, ferocity, and rawness to the stage that mirrors the power and elegance of real swans more closely than any ballet I've seen. The dancers' movement is animalistic yet artistic, and impeccably portrays both beauty and threat. There's also something visceral about the way the swans move. They ripple across the stage with wing-like arms that strike out in bursts of strength and sudden grace. Rather than the typical portrayal of dainty little swans, these dancers are intense, proud, and untamed — and in that, they feel astonishingly real. The central Swan, played by Rory Macleod, was utterly mesmerising. But the magic happened when the swans came together and dominated the stage, it was uttlely breathtaking. The choreography is powerful, emotive and funny. Contemporary to its core, yet it stays utterly true to the traditional Swan Lake in so many ways. From the use of shadows to the vocal hissing of the swans the tiny intricate details brought a whole other dimension to the Tchaikovsky classic. As the curtain went down for the final time the audience was clearly in agreement with me. An immediate standing ovation was more than deserved. The last time I was fortunate enough to see this masterpiece was in 2018 and I am seriously considering purchasing tickets to watch it again this weekend. I don't want to wait another seven years before the opportunity arises again. I could not recommend this more highly. You can buy your tickets here.
