Swan Lake
Last Friday night I went to the ballet to see Swan Lake performed by the St Petersburg Ballet Theatre. They are without a doubt the best ballet company in the world and most people would argue that Swan Lake is the most popular ballet in the world. It was absolutely phenomenal.
The story is about Prince Siegfried who falls in love with the Swan Queen Odette who is a woman that has been transformed into a bird by an evil sorcerer. She is cursed to remain a composite creature until she can be rescued by a man's undying love.
The story begins in the royal court where the Prince must declare a wife. Upset that he will be unable to marry for love he leaves the ball and goes into the forest to hunt. He sees a flock of swans and as he prepares to shoot one of them Odette lands directly in front of him. After she tells him of her curse, he takes pity on her and falls in love with her.
He returns to the castle to attend a party in honor of his 21st birthday. There he meets Von Rothbart (the sorcerer) and his daughter Odile, whom the Prince believes is Odette. He pledges his love to her but realises quickly that he has been tricked by the sorcerer. Distraught, he returns to the lake and battles Von Rothbart, destroying his powers by tearing off one of his wings. Afterwards, he and Odette are reunited and the curse is broken.
Swan Lake is considered to be a very technical ballet due mostly to an Italian ballerina named Pierina Legnani. She danced the central role of Odette / Odile and was able to perform 32 fouettes (a fast whipping turn on one foot) in a row. Ever since, the public expectation is that any other ballerina that performs the ballet must also be able to perform the 32 fouettes.
The SPBT was founded in 1994 by Konstantin Tatchkine and features Irina Kolsnikova in the lead, demanding role as Odette / Odile. She is a prima ballerina and is regarded by many to be world class technically brilliant legend.
The sets were fantastic, the costumes were beautiful and the music was superb. The orchestra was directed by Alexander Kantarov who is the founder and principal conductor. Both he and Irina received standing ovations when the ballet finished.
The story is about Prince Siegfried who falls in love with the Swan Queen Odette who is a woman that has been transformed into a bird by an evil sorcerer. She is cursed to remain a composite creature until she can be rescued by a man's undying love.
The story begins in the royal court where the Prince must declare a wife. Upset that he will be unable to marry for love he leaves the ball and goes into the forest to hunt. He sees a flock of swans and as he prepares to shoot one of them Odette lands directly in front of him. After she tells him of her curse, he takes pity on her and falls in love with her.
He returns to the castle to attend a party in honor of his 21st birthday. There he meets Von Rothbart (the sorcerer) and his daughter Odile, whom the Prince believes is Odette. He pledges his love to her but realises quickly that he has been tricked by the sorcerer. Distraught, he returns to the lake and battles Von Rothbart, destroying his powers by tearing off one of his wings. Afterwards, he and Odette are reunited and the curse is broken.
Swan Lake is considered to be a very technical ballet due mostly to an Italian ballerina named Pierina Legnani. She danced the central role of Odette / Odile and was able to perform 32 fouettes (a fast whipping turn on one foot) in a row. Ever since, the public expectation is that any other ballerina that performs the ballet must also be able to perform the 32 fouettes.
The SPBT was founded in 1994 by Konstantin Tatchkine and features Irina Kolsnikova in the lead, demanding role as Odette / Odile. She is a prima ballerina and is regarded by many to be world class technically brilliant legend.
The sets were fantastic, the costumes were beautiful and the music was superb. The orchestra was directed by Alexander Kantarov who is the founder and principal conductor. Both he and Irina received standing ovations when the ballet finished.
posted by Kub at 14:51
2 Comments:
Casualmente yo estaba pensando ver el "Cascanueces" que ha montado María Giménez aquí en Madrid.
dude, your post about the mendoza line was cool, but your post about swan lake was really gay. I guess on balance you're even.
Check out this great post
Anyway, I hope you are well and you have a nice holiday, as I probably won't see you.
Keep up the drinking, too...
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