New Victoria Theatre, Woking – until Saturday 4 May 2019
Reviewed by Catherine Francoise
5*****
In 2014 Matthew Bourne announced that his emotionally charged, audacious Swan Lake had become the longest running ballet in the West End and on Broadway. 5 years later in 2019 it is still packing in full houses in London, America, Japan, Australia, Israel and also on tour throughout the UK. Woking’s wonderful New Victoria Theatre was packed to the rafters and gleaned an instantaneous, rapturous standing ovation at the end. Swan Lake is the world’s most frequently performed ballet but who would have imagined New Adventure’s tremendous achievement when first performed in London 23 years ago? Judging by this first night full house standing ovation it looks set to run for decades more!
This season’s revival tour began last September and retains the essence of the original production. A central theme of doomed, forbidden love, a deeply unhappy lost Prince discovering himself which finds echoes in the real life of Tchaikovsky, composer of this magnificent score. On tour Bourne’s company have the luxury of dancing every performance to a superb recording of a full orchestra adding depth, emotion and power to every movement.
Bourne’s sensational reinvention of the Bolshoi’s 19th Century iconic beautiful swans (choreographed by Petipa) replaced traditional female corps de ballet with rather more grounded strong, edgy, irascible male swans. He says ‘…The strength, beauty and enormous wingspan of these creatures suggests to the musculature of a male dancer more readily than a ballerina in her white tutu…’ and indeed his swans’ choreography is powerful, sweeping, snatching, bouncing with long ‘necks’ prodding and intense, perfectly portraying them.
Will Bozier as the spell-binding Swan / psychopathic alter ego leather clad Stranger and Dominic North as a Prince whose journey of self-discovery is both painful and joyous, both danced and acted with such emotion, charisma and power that the standing ovation started immediately they re-appeared after the final chords had sounded at the end before the full company bows! Dramatic stuff indeed and incredibly emotional.
The 14 ‘corps de ballet’ male Swans themselves are all indispensable, characterful and remarkable. Strong, fluid, humorous yet menacing and ultimately cruel and lethal. The four clumsy baby cygnets take their moment also: witty, nervous and great fun!
Along the way, Bourne’s stylish, superb company bring character, comedy, precision, mime and wit as palace servants, royal officials, asylum nurses and society’s finest; also parodying romantic ballet with ornate costumes as butterflies, flowers, woodcutters and insects and deliberately over-exaggerated gestures ~ great fun! The disco dancers at 1960s/70s style seedy Swank’s nightclub also worth noting with a fabulous cameo fan dancer played brilliantly as a ‘Fag-Ash Lil’.
Nicole Kabera is elegance personified as ice cold Queen, Glenn Graham exudes authority as Private Secretary and Katrina Lyndon exacts every ounce of comedy as a delightful out-of-her-depth flighty, dim girlfriend/wannabe wag (Her costumes perhaps due a makeover).
The award-winning set and design by Lez Brotherston is huge and grandiose, enhanced by stunning costumes (so much attention to detail in gloves, accessories, glitz and makeup) and Paule Constable’s beautiful and evocative new lighting design brings even more atmosphere and drama to the lakeside swan scenes in particular.
Sir Matthew Bourne has created a poignant, passionate, powerful, contemporary Swan Lake for the 21st Century and an enduring legacy.
Playing at the New Victoria Theatre until Sat 4th May, with two more weeks in the UK at Newcastle Theatre Royal and the Sheffield Lyceum Theatre before going to Asia and America from July to January 2020. Absolutely your loss if you miss it!