Royal Ballet (live broadcast), 12/06/2018
Tchaikovsky : Swan Lake
Artists of the Royal Ballet
Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden
Koen Kessels
There are certain ballets that every classical ballet company possessing a corps de ballet absolutely has to stage; of all of these, Swan Lake is probably the most vital. The Royal Ballet's last production, staged by Sir Anthony Dowell, managed a shelf-life of just over 30 years, despite almost universally reviled set and costume designs, but it was clear at an early stage that everyone was looking forward to the new production scheduled for this season, and the anticipation has been met in full by this fresh and beautiful version.
Liam Scarlett was handed the reins on this occasion, in collaboration with John Macfarlane for the designs. Macfarlane's name alone was enough to whet the appetite; arguably Britain's best stage designer, we could now be sure that this was a show that was at the very least going to look good, and there was, apparently, early agreement that the swans would be appearing in tutus, rather than the long skirts of the previous production, which has been a much appreciated choice. Visually. the court has been set at the turn of the 20th Century, the men are almost all wearing military jackets, while the ladies in the first act have bustled dresses - full length for the character roles, such as the Queen, and abbreviated, lighter versions for the dancing parts. A sense of time fades rather after the first act, but this is quite normal for Swan Lake; the national dances and their specific costumes tend to take over Act 3, and these were indeed lavish, particularly the Mazurka couples, with their fur-trimmed surcoats and hats. Decor for the first act nicely evoked a looming forest to one side, while manicured park land stretched out towards the rear, and palace gates ornamented the other side. The ballroom was a blaze of red and gold, quite spectacular, while the lakeside was an atmospheric swirl of light and dark against which the swans glowed with a pearlescent gleam. It's all very, very handsome.
Scarlett has stuck pretty close to the standard versions of the ballet, and produced an effective, cohesive vision of the piece on the whole. Rothbart has a bigger presence than usual, appearing in a prologue during the Prelude in which we see him curse Odette, and then from the start as a significant figure at the Court, a close advisor to the Queen. I have to say that I found him more menacing in his 'civilian' guise than as the sorcerer, and I don't know if that was simply a side-effect of the way Bennet Gartside interprets him, or would be the same regardless of the dancer. I would have liked a little more edge to the sorcerer. Act 2, of course, is pretty much sacrosanct, nobody really tampers much with Ivanov's choreography here, except to tweak the corps numbers depending on how many swans a company is able to field, while Petipa's main numbers are also untouched, notably the Black Swan pas de deux.
Where Scarlett has provided his own choreography, though, he has done so deftly, blending in seamlessly with the traditional material, yet with, sometimes, a little touch of spice, a movement here or there that reminds you you're seeing a contemporary talent at work. It's understated, discreet, and wholly successful. There are some good ideas; the Prince's friend, Benno, has more to do than usual, without falling into the capering virtuosity of the Jester character that Russian productions often use. Here, he gets two pas de trois, with two girls presented as the Prince's sisters. One is the habitual Act 1 number, the other is in Act 3 and uses some of the pas de six music from that act. Akane Takada, Francesca Hayward and Alexander Campbell fulfilled these roles with lively charm. The Andante from the pas de six is transplanted into Act 4 to provide a second pas de deux for Odette and Siegfried, an idea I have seen used before and which works very nicely, to extend the dialogue between this couple, and to extend what can otherwise be an extremely short act. In a homage to the Royal Ballet's past productions, though, Scarlett has kept Sir Frederick Ashton's nimble and vivacious Neapolitan Dance, though Marcelino Sambé was not quite as twinkle-toed as is desirable in this number. Also, both he and Meaghan Grace Hinkis were clearly a lot happier once they got rid of the tambourines - if you can't hit the things firmly and on time (which I grant must be pretty difficult under the circumstances), would it not be better to pretend, and have one of the orchestra's percussionists do it properly?
However, the quality of dancing tonight was easily on a par with the quality of the production, and none higher than Marianela Nuñez and Vadim Muntagirov. This Siegfried is not so much the square peg in a round hole that one often sees in productions of Swan Lake as just a very young man with a suddenly overwhelming burden of expectations placed upon him. Muntagirov strikes a good balance between awareness of his princely status, and simple sincerity, and the unforced strength and long, elegant lines of his dancing are a joy to watch. Nuñez's grave, doubting White Swan bloomed exquisitely under this honesty, her poise unfaltering, yet always just on the point of taking off, running away, from circumstances she finds hard to believe. Her Odile showed more confidence, yet not so brash as to make the deception incomprehensible. Some dancers make the characters so different, you wonder how anyone could be taken in; Nuñez had more finesse than that; sultry looks, certainly, and almost breaking the fourth wall at times, yet never vulgarly seductive. She's at her best, though, in the last act, where Odette has moved beyond grief to a sorrowing detachment, no more doubt possible. Her movements and steps are almost ethereal, yet weighty with significance, it's a very finely judged performance, and exquisitely danced.
The corps was as good as I have ever seen them, everything in the right place at the right time, a smooth, harmonious ensemble, very much what is required for this ballet in particular. Also on magnificent form was the orchestra, with Kessels micro-managing tempo adjustments to help dancers give this step a little more time, or to speed up that one just a trifle, to ensure the best appearance. It was all beautifully handled, and the sound quality from the pit was exceptional. This new production must surely be considered an unqualified triumph that will delight audiences for years to come.
[Next : 9th July]
Artists of the Royal Ballet
Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden
Koen Kessels
There are certain ballets that every classical ballet company possessing a corps de ballet absolutely has to stage; of all of these, Swan Lake is probably the most vital. The Royal Ballet's last production, staged by Sir Anthony Dowell, managed a shelf-life of just over 30 years, despite almost universally reviled set and costume designs, but it was clear at an early stage that everyone was looking forward to the new production scheduled for this season, and the anticipation has been met in full by this fresh and beautiful version.
Liam Scarlett was handed the reins on this occasion, in collaboration with John Macfarlane for the designs. Macfarlane's name alone was enough to whet the appetite; arguably Britain's best stage designer, we could now be sure that this was a show that was at the very least going to look good, and there was, apparently, early agreement that the swans would be appearing in tutus, rather than the long skirts of the previous production, which has been a much appreciated choice. Visually. the court has been set at the turn of the 20th Century, the men are almost all wearing military jackets, while the ladies in the first act have bustled dresses - full length for the character roles, such as the Queen, and abbreviated, lighter versions for the dancing parts. A sense of time fades rather after the first act, but this is quite normal for Swan Lake; the national dances and their specific costumes tend to take over Act 3, and these were indeed lavish, particularly the Mazurka couples, with their fur-trimmed surcoats and hats. Decor for the first act nicely evoked a looming forest to one side, while manicured park land stretched out towards the rear, and palace gates ornamented the other side. The ballroom was a blaze of red and gold, quite spectacular, while the lakeside was an atmospheric swirl of light and dark against which the swans glowed with a pearlescent gleam. It's all very, very handsome.
 |
| Swan Lake, Act 4, Royal Ballet (© Bill Cooper/ROH 2018) |
Where Scarlett has provided his own choreography, though, he has done so deftly, blending in seamlessly with the traditional material, yet with, sometimes, a little touch of spice, a movement here or there that reminds you you're seeing a contemporary talent at work. It's understated, discreet, and wholly successful. There are some good ideas; the Prince's friend, Benno, has more to do than usual, without falling into the capering virtuosity of the Jester character that Russian productions often use. Here, he gets two pas de trois, with two girls presented as the Prince's sisters. One is the habitual Act 1 number, the other is in Act 3 and uses some of the pas de six music from that act. Akane Takada, Francesca Hayward and Alexander Campbell fulfilled these roles with lively charm. The Andante from the pas de six is transplanted into Act 4 to provide a second pas de deux for Odette and Siegfried, an idea I have seen used before and which works very nicely, to extend the dialogue between this couple, and to extend what can otherwise be an extremely short act. In a homage to the Royal Ballet's past productions, though, Scarlett has kept Sir Frederick Ashton's nimble and vivacious Neapolitan Dance, though Marcelino Sambé was not quite as twinkle-toed as is desirable in this number. Also, both he and Meaghan Grace Hinkis were clearly a lot happier once they got rid of the tambourines - if you can't hit the things firmly and on time (which I grant must be pretty difficult under the circumstances), would it not be better to pretend, and have one of the orchestra's percussionists do it properly?
However, the quality of dancing tonight was easily on a par with the quality of the production, and none higher than Marianela Nuñez and Vadim Muntagirov. This Siegfried is not so much the square peg in a round hole that one often sees in productions of Swan Lake as just a very young man with a suddenly overwhelming burden of expectations placed upon him. Muntagirov strikes a good balance between awareness of his princely status, and simple sincerity, and the unforced strength and long, elegant lines of his dancing are a joy to watch. Nuñez's grave, doubting White Swan bloomed exquisitely under this honesty, her poise unfaltering, yet always just on the point of taking off, running away, from circumstances she finds hard to believe. Her Odile showed more confidence, yet not so brash as to make the deception incomprehensible. Some dancers make the characters so different, you wonder how anyone could be taken in; Nuñez had more finesse than that; sultry looks, certainly, and almost breaking the fourth wall at times, yet never vulgarly seductive. She's at her best, though, in the last act, where Odette has moved beyond grief to a sorrowing detachment, no more doubt possible. Her movements and steps are almost ethereal, yet weighty with significance, it's a very finely judged performance, and exquisitely danced.
The corps was as good as I have ever seen them, everything in the right place at the right time, a smooth, harmonious ensemble, very much what is required for this ballet in particular. Also on magnificent form was the orchestra, with Kessels micro-managing tempo adjustments to help dancers give this step a little more time, or to speed up that one just a trifle, to ensure the best appearance. It was all beautifully handled, and the sound quality from the pit was exceptional. This new production must surely be considered an unqualified triumph that will delight audiences for years to come.
[Next : 9th July]