Swan Lake is one of the classics that one would have come across in some point of their life. But for me, not until The Hong Kong Ballet's matinee show on March 28 at Sha Tin Town Hall did I have a chance to watch the play live. I'm no expert in classical ballet, but from a layman point of view, the piece did not strike me as overwhelming as it should.
Fascinated from Russian folk tales and ancient German legend, it was a story about Odette, a princess turned into a swan by an evil sorcerer Von Rothbart's curse. She met a Prince Siegfried who swore his love to her which would break the sorcerer's spell. But Siegried was then fooled by Odile, the sorcere's daughter who resembled Odette, into marrying her. Although Odette was heart broken, she still forgave Siegried after his sincere apology. In order to be with each other, the couple killed themselves at the end, which also promoted Von Rothbart's loss of power and, subsequently, death.
Although the ballet was composed by Tchaikovsky in 1875 to 1876, most Swan Lake plays based on the Petipa/Ivanov 1895 version. Petipa was, at the time, the chief ballet master for the Russian Imperial theatres and a renowned choreographer and Ivanov was his assistant. In the creation of Swan Lake, Petipa, whose style and treatment are regarded as classical, worked mainly on Acts I and III while Ivanov gave romance on Acts II and IV.
Back from a tour to Beijing in January, the Hong Kong Ballet's Swan Lake was the highlight of the company's 30th birthday. Artistic director John Meehan has joined two young choreographers Selina Chau and Carlo Pacis to add fresh touch on the play. The new performances are Pacis's Waltz and Polonaise in Act I, Chau's three character dances and a coda in Act III, and Meehan's new pas de quatre in Act I and Neapolitan Dance in Act III.
For starter, the Tchaikovsky's music seems to be less powerful without the collaboration with a live orchestra. Act I was about Prince Siegfried's countryside party where his mother asked him to pick a wife at his birthday ball. The set and costumes as well as the corps de ballet created a cheerful atmosphere. The waltz that Chau designed brought a new taste to the play. The corps de ballet was holding a glass while dancing, which was interesting in the beginning but looked a bit clumsy in the end, for the hand movements were restricted by the glass. It would have been nice to see more particular spatial positions from the corps de ballet that could make the small stage seemed spacious.
The focus of Act II was the pas de deux by Odette and Siegfried. The ballerina Wu Fei-fei looked delicate and vulnerable which fitted the image of Odette. Although she was not one of the principal dancers, Wu still captured the spirit the Swan Queen. Yet, on the other hand, her prince Brett Simon seemed slightly rigid.
Blessed with long slender limbs, Simon can easily perform elegant movements as long as he kept his action firm. But occasionally he looked a bit soft and fragile with dangling movements. He facial expression cannot be clearly seen from behind, but from his body language, I was under the impression that he was lost and confused most of the time. However, there is little doubt that Wu and Simon will be up-and-coming performers in the near future.
After a short break, the play resumed to Act III ball room, where princesses from four countries were introduced to Siegried. All movements from the four princesses and escorts showed elements of their traditional dance, which was a feast to the eye. Personally, I liked the Hungary princess's dance the most, since Jae-eun Park showed powerful and confident dances to the up-beat music in a red dress like burning flame. The pas de deux from Italy princess and escort was very smooth that showed the pair's superb coordination. The only criticism was their costume as the colors looked tacky. The rundown of this scene was simple: the princesses presented themselves one by one until the black swan, Odile, appeared in the end and danced with Siegried. I have seen video of some other version that after the princesses danced with their escort, they would dance a little bit more with the Siegried before Odile came. Some even intertwine the princesses' dance with Siegried with Odile's appearance to show the heart of the prince laid with the Swan Queen and he was not interested in other girls. I think the Hong Kong Ballet's version was slight too rush.
The entry of Odile, Ye Fei-fei, brought the play to the climax of the night. Ye's seductive and stunning movement gave a good reason for Siegried to fall for her. Her dance remained strong and intricate, going back and forth between Von Rothbart and Siegried. She also struggled and tried hard to finish the famous 32 fouettes, which earned big applauds. But the part when Siegried realized he had been cheated, it was a bit blur about his reaction to Odile. Sometimes Odile might join her father to laugh at Siegried, while sometimes Von Rothbart might protect Odile from an angry Siegried. The Hong Kong Ballet's version was little bit in the middle to me.
The Act IV was the final scene where Siegried beg for Odette's forgiveness and the duo resigned to death in order to be together. The performance was moving until Von Rothbart showed. The evil sorcerer was slender dancer in a green costume with a cloak, which I think was more comical than scary. His movement was limited to waving his torn cloak which was not impressive. But Wu did outstanding dance in particular when she was lifted up by Von Rothbart. She body told the story of her broken and desperate heart. The corps de ballet also showed very elaborate formations on the stage that complemented the whole ending.
Although the play was a fair production, I would love to see more development from other characters, like the Queen. It was a pity that the presentation of the authoritative role was resorted to a long cloak moving in the air instead of dances from a talented dancer. There is also room for improvement for the story telling technique of the performance since most characters looked blank when they were not dancing. Despite all the criticism, I did feel contented when I walked out of the theatre for Swan Lake is the classic of all classics that has been a source of inspiration for everyone.
「看舞‧析舞‧論舞——舞蹈賞析及評論寫作計劃」由國際演藝評論家協會（香港分會）和香港舞蹈聯盟合辦及統籌。
本網站內一切內容之版權均屬國際演藝評論家協會（香港分會）及原作者所有，未經本會及/或原作者書面同意，不得轉載。