ABT SWAN LAKE on DVD

We finally watched the ABT SWAN LAKE on DVD; it served as a reminder of everything I dislike about full-length story ballets. People complain that City Ballet's production of SWAN LAKE by Peter Martins is too pared-down but for me it is all of SWAN LAKE I'll ever want to see. And I love Peter's staging of the ending: a real human tragedy.

The ABT version features such superb dancers as Gillian Murphy as Odette/Odile, Angel Corella (Siegfried) and Herman Cornejo (Benno) and they all deliver the goods with total assurance and brilliance. As Odette, I thought Murphy lacked that poignant mixture of fear and longing that should colour the swan queen's slow journey to trusting Siegfried. On the other hand, as Odile, her fouettes are stunning: quadruples thrown in...we saw her in this ballet at the Met a few seasons back and she stopped the show, literally. Corella is so handsome, such an easy virtuoso, and he seems involved in the drama - sometimes there have been complaints about him in that regard - but there doesn't seem to be much chemistry between Gillian and Angel, and she is a bit too tall for him. Cornejo is just plain brilliant.

The performance meanders, bogged down by sluggish tempi from the pit with the occasional eccentric acceleration. The sets are cheesy, with spangles on the lake. The swans dance nicely. The would-be brides get lost in the shuffle of the national dances. Just as I was about to nod off completely, the doors to the ballroom fly open and Marcelo Gomes arrives to save the day. As Rothbart, Gomes is given an expanded dancing role in this production; a lesser dancer might have made this interpolation seem endless but Marcelo has the breathtaking line and amplitude to make the slow solo mesmerizing. And also - let's face it - he is a gorgeous guy. He puts the princesses under his spell and even makes the Queen hot under her bejeweled collar. Having been lured in by Marcelo, we were ready to enjoy the excellent Black Swan pas de deux which Gillian and Angel delivered. {Photographs are by Roy Round from his wonderful book ROUND ABOUT THE BALLET}.

But over by the lake, Rothbart is back in his swamp-creature guise; I didn't really feel the tenderness and desperation of Siegfried's remorse or of Odette's forgiveness and resignation. They fling themselves into the lake, somewhat comically, and then there is the most god-awful pink & pouffy sunrise apotheosis as the ballet limps to its close.

When we last saw this production in the theatre, Julie Kent and Marcelo Gomes had the leads and the power of their personalities and the perfect dove-tailing of their interpretations overcame the dismal aspects of the staging and it was a memorable night. The video presentation force-feeds us the production's overblown and garish aspects so that, as wonderfully as Gillian and Angel danced, it seemed endless.   

Comments

[Dmitry]

It sounds like the issue here isn't full-length story ballets, but this production of one.

[Philip]

I've felt the same way about watching the ABT ROMEO & JULIET, SLEEPING BEAUTY and BAYADERE in recent seasons.

[Susan]

Philip, I think it's clear that you just don't like full length narrative ballets, but in this case your choice of production doesn't help.

IMO the Mckenzie staging is the worst of all possible worlds. The 3rd act additions are fine but he actually does "streamline" both lakeside scenes thereby robbing the story of it's magic. And he does so insidiously, so most people don't even realize how much the music & choreography has been tampered with. Plus which Murphy is not an adagio dancer which makes her a very cold Odette and she has zero chemistry with Corella.

I have an out of print VHS of Makarova & Nagy in ABT's 1970's staging. If you want to see why some of us love the traditional Swan lake I might be persuaded to lend it to you - provided you still have a vhs player.

[Philip]

Susan, I think my problems with full-length narrative ballets are very deep-rooted!