The Royal Ballet: New Swan Lake Production, Summer 2018

[Sim]

I was in Row L of the amphi and saw it from there.  

[Shirley]

5 minutes ago, Sim said:

I was in Row L of the amphi and saw it from there.  

I was in row R so not obvious for me but then I was looking at Siegfried through binoculars 😉

[Ian Macmillan]

Did I see a mention of "nifty hydraulics" hefting Odette into place for a vision?  Way back in touring days, theatre unknown, the dancer designated as the 'vision' climbed up into place, started pleading to the Prince being seduced by Odile, when whatever she was standing on gave way and she collapsed out of sight.  Probably not "nifty hydraulics" that night, and possibly something akin to a wobbly tabletop.

[stella]

On 18 May 2018 at 09:29, zxDaveM said:

Here are some photos:

 

Vadim Muntagirov
© Dave Morgan. Courtesy of DanceTabs / Flickr

 

Vadim Muntagirov, Marianela Nunez, Bennet Gartside, and artists of the company
©  Dave Morgan. Courtesy of DanceTabs / Flickr

See more... 

Set from DanceTabs: RB - Swan Lake 2018
Courtesy of DanceTabs / Flickr

By kind Permission of The Royal Opera House

these photos are stunning! can't wait to watch the cinema relay. 

[Mary]

8 hours ago, Shirley said:

I was in row R so not obvious for me but then I was looking at Siegfried through binoculars 😉

and who could blame you?

 

 I think a lot of people were focusing on Siegfried - of course. My companion missed the vision/spirit completely.

The point is, Siegfried doesn't see her.  If he were to, then the 'resolution' would fit the music, - for me. It isn't Giselle because in Giselle he has seen the spirit.

 

[Shirley]

4 minutes ago, Mary said:

The point is, Siegfried doesn't see her.  If he were to, then the 'resolution' would fit the music, - for me. It isn't Giselle because in Giselle he has seen the spirit.

 

Agree completely - I would have much preferred them  dead together in the nicest possible way of course 😉

[Richard LH]

It's strange how sometimes people see things differently. The NY Times reviewer, Roslyn Sulcas, is generally positive (if a little cool) about the opening night , but includes two particular reservations, one being the "peculiarly unbelievable" character of the Queen's advisor/ Von Rothbart; the second being the corps, which "often looked ragged" (?!)

 

For me, those elements were two of the best features of this great performance. It makes perfect sense (as much as any fairy story makes sense)  to show the evil  character behind all the spell-casting having a presence throughout the performance, and  trying to manipulate everyone to his ends. We can see V R's motivation  in this production, getting  Siegfried tied up with his daughter Odile to assist his power grab on the Kingdom.

 

As for the corps, I (and  every other commentator I have heard or read) saw only beautiful precise  formations and movement, danced perfectly together - it must take tremendous planning and dedicated practice. The production could not be a success without them, as Scarlett  acknowledged at the end. 

[Lizbie1]

On the subject of the corps, I agree with the view expressed by, I think, MRR above: that they were exemplary in Act 2 but Act 4 needs a little fine tuning. I think it's a bit unfair to summarise that as "often looking ragged". Maybe the NYT reviewer is looking for the famous/notorious Mariinsky "CGI swans", but that would be very much outside the RB tradition and is, besides, surely a matter of preference (I may be biased, but I want my swans to look like living, breathing creatures).

 

I thought the bit about Von Rothbart was weird - it reads as if no equivalent character exists in the Swan Lakes she's used to, which I find hard to believe.

 

BTW I don't agree with Mark Monahan's review on the subject of Von Rothbart either: he seems to have a bee in his bonnet about the necessity of employing a dramaturg (they're a pretty recent phenomenon in this country after all) and he's also IMO been guilty more than once of playing favourites: this time round Bennet Gartside's crimes appear to be 1) looking like a cartoon character I'm not familiar with and 2) not being Gary Avis.

Edited May 19, 2018 by Lizbie1

[bridiem]

I was actually really impressed at how polished the performance was, given that it was the première of a huge and complex new production. Of course as it beds in any very minor uncertainties will be ironed out.

Edited May 19, 2018 by bridiem

[capybara]

I feel very torn because, usually, I like to see several casts before commenting but, in relation to the opening night, I simply have to utter two words: 

 

V A D I M     M U N T A G I R O V  

 

Some initial thoughts on the production later.

[JohnS]

A further thought about the ending.  I recognise that Siegfried doesn't see Odette's appearance behind him.  But we in the audience can (although not all seats allow for a view).  We can if we choose read what we like into Odette's appearance.  For my part I like to think that in time Siegfried will recognise the love he experienced for Odette continues and strengthens beyond her death and his coming to terms with his loss and recognition of the limitations of his responsibility, given Von Rothbart's trickery, will enable him to find solace.  He may think that Odette in dying would want him to be able to live his life, never forgetting, but finding strength to carry on - I look forward very much to seeing the final PPD again and whether I feel this comes across.  So I found the ending extremely moving, more human, and in some ways more real than the romanticised double deaths with a promise of life beyond death.

 

I full accept Mary's point about Giselle and Albrecht seeing her spirit.  I simply used Giselle as shorthand for a single death and Tristan as a double death.

[FLOSS]

Here are my first impressions of this new production which I may change  during the course of the run as Scarlett's version of Swan Lake  becomes more familiar. The designs for this production work extremely well to create the mood required in each act and they provide a cleverly disguised uncluttered  area in which to dance. I am not entirely convinced by the  colour palette selected for the first act costumes but the real problem as far as I am concerned is the lighting levels in  the white acts where I assume the intention is that Siegfried should be visible. Unfortunately the current lighting levels combined with the colour of his costume means that there are occasions when from the upper reaches of the Amphitheatre he disappears into the surrounding gloom. It does not look as if anyone went up to the Amphi to check on general visibility levels there.  The third act is particularly fine with not a single bit of intrusive bling to be seen . The atmosphere created by the designs for this act is  further enhanced by an absence of unseemly behaviour from  Benno. or the guests. For whoever Von Rothbart is revealed to be in the fourth act in his role as a courtier he runs a tight ship as far as court etiquette and seemly behaviour are concerned.

 

This production is not a two speed version of the ballet in which the principal characters either dance far more slowly than the corps which surround them or dance sections of the choreography as if they are devoid of any theatrical context  and the act 3 pas de deux merely a high octane gala piece. Unfortunately the production has been saddled with a totally superfluous Prologue showing how Odette was transformed into a swan by Von Rothbart and because there is no double suicide in act 4 there is no Apotheosis  at the end of the ballet in which we see Odette and Siegfried united in death. Instead we are shown Siegfried carrying Odette's lifeless body onto the stage and a vision of Odette on high. This does not have the same feel of choreographic inevitability and organic connection with the music which the traditional Apotheosis has.

 

Act 1

Of the four acts I find the first act of this production the least satisfactory and the most confused. As originally created by Petipa the first act set the narrative in motion and provided him with two opportunities to create set pieces which displayed  two aspects of his ability as a choreographer. The waltz  which displayed his much admired skill in handling large forces in a confined space and a pas de trois  which gave him the opportunity to display the technical  skills of the company's in-house classical dancers before the audience had set eyes on the Italian guest artist for whom the ballet had been created and whose artistic and technical skills it was intended to display.

 

If I recall correctly at some point Scarlett said that he wanted to update the choreography of the ballet to give the dancers an opportunity to display their  modern technique. As he has not done much to alter act 2  and much of his choreography in act 4 refers back to the choreography for the swans in the iconic second act it would seem that most of Scarlett's  modernising tendencies have been applied to the choreography of the first act.  Here Scarlett has created a problem as the "quiet" and less challenging sections of the choreography of this act such as the processions and the group dances for the lower orders are not necessarily evidence of a lack of skill on the part of the dancers who have appeared in them over the generations since the ballet was first staged in St.Petersburg which would benefit from improvement but carefully calculated "quiet" passages created for theatrical effect to provide a suitable contrasting setting for the performance of Petipa's choreographic set pieces. Now while little remains of Petipa's waltz apart from the floor plan the need to make that section special in some way remains whether it be in the number of dancers appearing in it or the style of choreography applied to it and it helps if the section of choreography which precedes it is comparative calm. Ashton created two versions of the waltz, a pas de six and later a pas de douze. The latter stood out from its choreographic surroundings because it used a very classical dance vocabulary which was very different in quality and style from the "quieter" passages of movement which preceded and followed it. In this production the waltz. The pas de trois did not have the impact it should because it  did not stand out sufficiently from its choreographic surroundings. I think that Scarlett has miscalculated with his improvements in this act. It will be interesting to see how the first act, and these sections of the ballet in particular, settled own  as the run progresses. At the moment rather than enhancing them the new choreography seems to have absorbed them.

 

The Queen presents her son with the crossbow saving him the embarrassment of wrenching a weapon from the hands of an underling. Her mimed  admonition to her son that he must marry is not delivered with the same urgency that we have seen in the past but then in this production Scarlett seems anxious to show mime as an integrated form of dance movement.

 

Act 2

Although Siegfried has no entourage of huntsmen and is only accompanied by Benno who seems far too ready to leave the scene this is without doubt the most familiar section of choreography in this production.  If it  looks different from when it was last seen in the Dowell production this is because both Odette and her swans seem to be dancing in the same ballet as far as tempi are concerned. This is not a two speed version of act 2,fast for the corps and ultra slow for Odette and her prince. with the music tortured into submission to accommodate a speed of paint drying slowness. Odette retains her mime about the lake of her mother's tears but has no need to beg the prince not to shoot her flock of swans. In fact Siegfried seemed so disinclined to use his crossbow that I began to wonder whether we were witnessing the first vegetarian prince. We lose the young swans danced by students from the RBS and we revert to an all white flock of swans dressed in tutus

 

Act 3

I am not convinced that dressing the prospective brides in tutus adds much, if anything, to the mix as they are given no more to dance than Ashton gave them. The divertissements begin with a pas de trois danced by Benno and Siegfried's sisters to the music used by Ashton in his pas de quatre.Unfortunately I think that Ashton made far more inventive use of it than Scarlett has managed to do. This is followed by the usual sequence of national dances. The Spanish dance seems to owe a great deal choreographically to Don Q, but Ashton's version also hinted at connections with other choreographer's theatrical stagings of Spanish dancing. Perhaps it's me but I think that I see hints in both the Czardas  and the Mazurka of the pre-Dowell production of the ballet. I recognise that there are only a limited number of options available to anyone staging these divertissements but it is more than the steps feeling familiar. The Neapolitan dance looked quite good but was not danced with the sort of gusto that it really needs. It was just a bit too careful. The Black Swan pas de deux was danced with musicality as if it had real theatrical context as a pas d'action rather than as a high octane gala piece. At the end of the pas when Odile's true identity is revealed Von Rothbart seizes the  Queen's crown and that did not really work for me.

 

Act 4

This is Scarlett's own choreograph which picks up on themes and groupings from the second act including the wedge of massed swans. It is very tasteful but over all it seems to be dominated by straight lines. The occasional square tacked onto them does not add to their interest. Perhaps it all looks better from the stalls. I admire Scarlett's  bravery in trying to create something comparable to  Ivanov's original choreography for this act and Ashton's mesmerising version which used music which was cut from the score used in the Petipa/ Ivanov version of the ballet. I believe that Ashton was criticised for tampering with the fourth act and that when he explained it was intended as a homage to ivanov the general consensus was that the greatest respect he could have shown to the original choreographer was to have left that section of the work untouched. Now I think that Ashton's version which does not use the standard musical text of act four is as much a work of genius as the Ivanov original. Unfortunately on first sighting Scarlett's version does not seem as effective or inventive as either Ashton's or Ivanov's choreography. I may grow to like it better but  for me the main problem with Scarlett's fourth  act is one he has created for himself in giving the ballet a  bleak ending in which only Odette kills herself and Siegfried is left alive mourning over her dead body. It is not so much the ending to which I object but the fact that it makes little emotional sense when set to the transcendental music used for the Apotheosis in all previous versions of the ballet staged by the company. The problem is that I associate it with a scene in which the lovers are reunited in death and the music and the image are so inextricably linked that I cannot  separate the music from the image in much the same  way as Scarlett has said that he cannot separate the music for the Neapolitan dance from the choreography Ashton set to it.

Edited May 19, 2018 by FLOSS

[Indigo]

2 hours ago, Lizbie1 said:

BTW I don't agree with Mark Monahan's review on the subject of Von Rothbart either: he seems to have a bee in his bonnet about the necessity of employing a dramaturg (they're a pretty recent phenomenon in this country after all) and he's also IMO been guilty more than once of playing favourites: this time round Bennet Gartside's crimes appear to be 1) looking like a cartoon character I'm not familiar with and 2) not being Gary Avis.

 

I'm certainly not defending this part of Mark Monahan's review, which came across oddly in this section to me too.  But I have to confess that there were a few occasions when Von Rothbart in Acts I & III reminded me of someone in both appearance & in the style of their villainous intent.  After reading the review I realised it was the cartoon character, Gru  😮    Though I did suspect that this was more attributable to the skulking Von Rothbart had been assigned to do at court & the choices of the costume / wig design department, rather than the individual dancer.   

  

Bennet Gartside is such a talented actor,  that I feel confident his interpretation of the newly enhanced role of Von Rothbart will deepen & develop further as the run progresses.  

 

I'm booked for quite a few more performances, so as well as looking forward to the interpretations of others cast as Von Rothbart, I'm hoping to catch Bennet's Von Rothbart again because there was a lot about his interpretation that I appreciated & enjoyed.  It would be great if the ROH could add this casting information to their Swan Lake webpage, as they did before (if IIRC).

 

Edit: Just to add that at first viewing, I liked the expanded role of Von Rothbart & what this adds to the overall narrative sense.

 

Edited May 19, 2018 by Indigo

[Beryl H]

It all sounds wonderful, looking forward to seeing photos of the scenery in detail, can't see any mention of this but there's so much to read, does Siegfried have a solo in Act 1, or the new Act 4 ?

[capybara]

1 hour ago, Beryl H said:

It all sounds wonderful, looking forward to seeing photos of the scenery in detail, can't see any mention of this but there's so much to read, does Siegfried have a solo in Act 1, or the new Act 4 ?

 

Yes, he does as the Act 1 set transforms into Act 2.

[Richard LH]

OK 15 mins. to go.  Wishing all the cast a fantastic performance!

[Coated]

William Bracewell looked so secure and natural in the first act, I had to check whether he had danced it before (not according to his bio).

 

*swans back off to for more lac*

[alison]

On 18/05/2018 at 10:13, bangorballetboy said:

Of course, it is uplifting that the evil spirit has been defeated and the curse has been lifted from the other 26 ladies!

 

Except we don't see the latter, at least - Odette may have been restored to human form in her death, but the others are still doing the usual swanny things, so I presume they are still swans, unless they've just got so used to doing that that they've forgotten how to act human again?

[alison]

BTW, the inky blackness of the sets looks stunning live, but I'm wondering how Act IV in particular is going to show up in the cinema?  Perhaps they'll need the lights up as for the curtain calls!  Or possibly the lighting is actually clear enough that things will show up as intended.

[Sim]

24 minutes ago, alison said:

 

Except we don't see the latter, at least - Odette may have been restored to human form in her death, but the others are still doing the usual swanny things, so I presume they are still swans, unless they've just got so used to doing that that they've forgotten how to act human again?

I have always wondered this about Swan Lake:  if they are supposed to turn back into maidens at night, why are they always in swan costumes and still behaving like swans all night?!

[alison]

And why does Siegfried take Odette's story so calmly?  "Okay, so an evil man has turned you into a swan except during the nighttime hours?  And that lake is formed by your mother's tears?  Right.  Oh wait, you're a queen?  Eeek.  I'm only a prince, so I need to bow to you!  Unforgiveable breach of etiquette!"

 

I mean, being turned into a swan is really ... unusual.  Not something that happens every few weeks.  Yet we rarely get to feel that in any production.

[MRR]

I've always interpreted the maidens dressed as swans symbolic: even though they're maidens by night, the curse is still very much with them and inescapable.  And to contrast with Odette, Odile is also a woman in a swan tutu and headpiece, just a different color.  I like Scarlett's production in this sense because Odile (along with her entourage of black swans at the end of Act III) are women not under Rothbart's spell, whereas Odette and her white swans are.  The Mariinsky Act IV with white and black swans interspersed in the corps, while visually stunning, has not made sense to me as the black swans don't appear in Act II and are not related to Odile in any way.  

 

A point of confusion I have with Scarlett's staging is that in the prologue we see Princess Odette transformed into a swan, while in the apotheosis her lifeless body is carried out.  So, yes, this raises the question whether the corps is still under the spell in their tutus vs. Odette at the beginning and end of the ballet in her dress.  I still take Odette's jumping in the lake to mean the spell is broken, thus killing Rothbart and setting the swans free.  But the visual juxtaposition with the swan corps against the princess is difficult to reconcile.

 

Stanton Welch's production for Houston Ballet has each swan in Act IV exit while a maiden enters in her place, wondering where her feathers have gone.  An approach of "literalism taken too far" but perhaps effective for some.  

Edited May 20, 2018 by MRR

[capybara]

The Princess in the Prologue last night was Sae Maeda. But is the Von Rothbart there the same dancer as the one who, such a little time later, is being his courtier self outside the palace gates?

[ElleC]

Anyone able to comment on Takada and Bracewell last night? I can't wait to hear as I'm very much looking forward to seeing this partnership on the 31st, and the rehearsal photos, as well KO'H's rehearsal of William at last week's insight evening, looked stunning!

[Rob S]

If the spell says they are only maidens at night shouldn’t the sets of act two and four be daylight rather than moonlit? Or was the spell cast during a holiday in Australia, did Rothbart fail to state the curse applies to Odette’s local time wherever she is in the world !? 

Edited May 20, 2018 by Rob S

[Richard LH]

33 minutes ago, ElleC said:

Anyone able to comment on Takada and Bracewell last night? I can't wait to hear as I'm very much looking forward to seeing this partnership on the 31st, and the rehearsal photos, as well KO'H's rehearsal of William at last week's insight evening, looked stunning!

 

I am struggling to find a suitable way of acknowledging  Akane Takada’s outstanding performance  as Odette/Odile. She commanded attention on the stage at every point. Technically brilliant  (32 fouettés ?  no problem...)  but also sophisticated, subtle,  mesmerising, charismatic, enigmatic, stylish … the list goes on. A vulnerable,  moving and regal Odette; an enticing, sexy, wicked Odile.  An amazingly  controlled, mature and nuanced display from the young Principal. 

William Bracewell as her  fitting, assured partner, well  portrayed  a naive young prince awe struck by his encounters with both Odette and Odile.

It was always going to be difficult to follow the first night, but to my mind, and judging by the prolonged and heartfelt applause, these two pulled it off brilliantly.

Edited May 20, 2018 by Richard LH

[bridiem]

1 hour ago, Rob S said:

If the spell says they are only maidens at night shouldn’t the sets of act two and four be daylight rather than moonlit? Or was the spell cast during a holiday in Australia, did Rothbart fail to state the curse applies to Odette’s local time wherever she is in the world !? 

 

Yes, I've sometimes wondered this (though not in quite these terms!). Perhaps there's a deeper 'night' during which the swan maidens are only swans. And, when Odette turns back into a swan, although she looks the same she dances differently - no human variation, just a kind of trance-like movement off the stage. So the way they look/dress is not the indication of which state they are in. And it may be that they're not necessarily swans ALL night - only when VR chooses to cast his 'night' spell and resume total control over them. Just thinking aloud here...

[ElleC]

Thanks very much, RichardLH. Sounds to be very much what I was hoping for! 😊

[MRR]

5 hours ago, capybara said:

The Princess in the Prologue last night was Sae Maeda. But is the Von Rothbart there the same dancer as the one who, such a little time later, is being his courtier self outside the palace gates?

I believe so. Thomas Whitehead (Saturday) was the human Von Rothbart in the prologue, that would be an amazing quick change if not! And no real logic in having him as Act II Rothbart in the beginning when the makeup obscures who it is anyway.

Edited May 20, 2018 by MRR

[zxDaveM]

in the rehearsal I went to, the von Rothbart in the Prologue was not the 'proper' von Rothbart dancing the rest of the performance (Bracewell doubled in for Gartside). Don't know if the same personnel used opening night, but can't imagine it wasn't. vB has a mighty fast costume change to make, if he did that Prologue as well!

The vision 'Odette' in act 3 and the woman in Siegfried's arms at the end, was a student (the same one - Forsyth). Again, I don't know if this applied to the opening night performance and/or was different for other performances, but imagine it was at least for opening night, as a vague looky-likey for Nunez

[capybara]

1 hour ago, zxDaveM said:

in the rehearsal I went to, the von Rothbart in the Prologue was not the 'proper' von Rothbart dancing the rest of the performance (Bracewell doubled in for Gartside).

 

William Bracewell has turned into a super-sub - for Watson in Obsidean Tear, for various Gentlemen in Manon, for McRae as Siegfried and now you tell us that he is Von Rothbart's double as well.

 

I saw his Siegfried debut last night and was suitably impressed. His Act 3 pdd variation lacked the pzazz of Muntagirov's but his Act1/2 solo had all the yearning one could ask for and his acting was spot on. And it was interesting to see him deliver on several of the coaching points offered by Kevin O'Hare at the Insight last Tuesday.

 

 

[Jan McNulty]

Well of course both Alexander Campbell and William Bracewell honed their stage craft at BRB and ardent followers of BRB already knew that they were both wonderful when they joined RB!

[capybara]

48 minutes ago, Jan McNulty said:

Well of course both Alexander Campbell and William Bracewell honed their stage craft at BRB and ardent followers of BRB already knew that they were both wonderful when they joined RB!

 

I know, Janet!

I have admired William Bracewell' dancing since I first saw him at the RBS and have followed his progress with considerable interest ever since.

I still think that it is a major achievement for someone who has just joined the RB to take to the ROH stage as Siegfried and perform so well at a debut, especially in a brand new production 

BTW, he is talking to The Ballet Association on the 7th June and it should be a really interesting evening.