The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire)
Pared-back Swan Lake puts dance centre-stage
Even if you don’t know anything about ballet, chances are you’ll have heard of Swan Lake.
With a musical arrangement by Russian composer Tchaikovsky, the timeless tale of a princess turned into a swan who is betrayed by her true love was first staged in 1877 by Moscow’s legendary Bolshoi company.
Its moving score and stunning choreography have seen the piece regularly performed across the globe for almost a century, and it’s fair to say it’s probably the world’s most famous ballet.
With neither a tutu nor a tiara in sight, national troupe Scottish Ballet devised a graceful new version of Swan Lake under the auspices of acclaimed London choreographer David Dawson in 2016, and were all set to reprise the hugely successful production as the pandemic hit four years ago.
Dawson’s modern spin on the classic finally made its return to the stage earlier this month, with a three-night run at Glasgow’s Theatre Royal kicking off a Scottish tour taking in venues in Aberdeen, Inverness and Edinburgh.
Ahead of Swan Lake opening at His Majesty’s Theatre in the Granite City tonight, Scottish Ballet principal dancer Roseanna Leney says playing the “emotionally draining” dual role of swan queen Odette and her love rival Odile represents something of a pinch-me moment following 2020’s heartbreaking cancellation.
“My audition for the company back in 2016 was one of the Swan Lake rehearsals and I remember watching it and thinking: ‘Wow, I really want to dance this piece!’ – it’s pretty special,” she says.
“I got the job and joined the following season when it had just finished, but I thought at some point hopefully I’d get the chance to do it.
“So when in 2020 it was due to come back around I was so excited to be cast as one of the swans.
“This time, not only am I getting to do it, but I’m getting to perform the role of Odile.
“I know it sounds cliched but it’s kind of a dream come true, particularly this version.
“David Dawson is such an amazing choreographer and so well-known.
“Me and my partner Evan Loudon were basically crying at the end of the last show in Glasgow, but without any actual physical tears because we’d sweated out all the water in our bodies.”
Since Scottish Ballet’s post-lockdown return, Roseanna has enjoyed lead parts in such celebrated productions as The Snow Queen and A Streetcar Named Desire.
She says she was “so excited” to be offered the chance to appear as a principal in Dawson’s creation, with her life partner Bruno Micchiardi also securing a key role on the tour as Siegfried, the
young misfit who falls for both Odette and Odile.
The casting was confirmed while the couple were appearing in Scottish Ballet’s version of Cinderella during the festive season, with Swan Lake subsequently pieced together again across fewer than two months’ worth of rehearsals.
“Four years ago we’d only really got into two weeks of the process so we hadn’t fully finished relearning it, so to try to learn it again this time round it was kind of starting from scratch,” says Roseanna, 31.
“We were watching the videos – watching the production and rehearsal footage from back in 2016 as well as 2020 – and trying to put it back together.
“Dawson himself visited a couple of weeks before we opened and he worked mostly with the swans and the principals.
“To work with him oneon-one was not only incredible and inspiring, but it was so nice to have a few changes made by him on me and Evan because it was to suit our bodies and how the movement sits on us. That was an opportunity in itself.”
Boasting a minimal set and sleek costumes that help focus the audience’s attention on the astonishing athleticism the performers demonstrate on the stage, Dawson’s visceral choreography is as much a celebration of its all-female corps de ballet as its leads.
The company of swarming dancers at the heart of Siegfried’s comingof-age story are pushed to their physical limits by the demands of a Swan Lake conceived with a new generation – both on and off the stage – firmly in mind.
“We’re trying to encourage more young people to come to the ballet,” says Surrey-raised Roseanna.
“It’s a very modern take so even the storyline is much more relatable, which is what David wanted. He’s made Siegfried just your everyday character rather than a prince, so we don’t have a royal ball and it’s much more approachable in that regard.
“The completely stripped-back set and costumes in Swan Lake put the focus entirely on the incredible expansive movements David is known for.
“I’ve always wanted to dance one of his works, so to have the opportunity to work with him, let alone on the main role of his ballet, was an intense and almost unreal experience when he was able to come to Scotland.
“I was inspired, exhausted, happy, sore – all of these different things – but it was so motivating as well. Hopefully young people can go along and enjoy the physicality of ballet.”
Swan Lake is at His Majesty’s Theatre, April 18-20, and Eden Court, Inverness, April 26-27. For tickets go to scottishballet.co.uk