š Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake
š The Lyric, Theatre Royal Plymouth, Royal Parade, Plymouth, Devon, PL1 2TR
š Tuesday 12th November 2024
āļøāļøāļøāļøāļø
PERFECTION PERSONIFIED
Matthew Bourne's SWAN LAKE burst onto the scene in 1995 and changed the landscape of dance forever. The latest revival - THE NEW GENERATION - celebrates 30 years of this genre-busting production and the tour has opened this week at Theatre Royal Plymouth.
Set to the wonderful music of Tchaikovsky, SWAN LAKE follows a young prince who has a tenuous relationship with his estranged mother and who, becoming bored with official duties, yearns for freedom.
Stephen Murray was absolutely spellbinding as The Prince. The way he wholeheartedly embodied the very core of his character was utterly captivating. Not only was his movement exceptional but his storytelling and acting perfectly portrayed The Prince's every emotion.
Nicole Kabera was glorious as The Queen, giving everything you could want and perfectly portraying her arrogance. She very much epitomised the fabled 'icy Queen' and the distant mother - son relationship was painfully powerful to watch.
The Prince has a girlfriend somewhat imposed on him and Bryony Woods in this role became the comic relief in a turbulent and - at times - violent story and was glorious throughout, even if she did display appalling theatre etiquette! This is during the ballet within a ballet scene and is reminiscent of a more classic piece, much like the original SWAN LAKE would have been.
Back in his private chambers a drunken Prince beseeches his mother for her love and attention, something she is not forthcoming with. The moderately violent scene between the two is breathtaking to behold and the entire auditorium is left with aching hearts at its conclusion.
The Prince then takes himself off to a seedy club where he is ejected after getting into a fight. The choreography seems to change here to brilliantly create the atmosphere required. With Murray's divine acting ability once again at the forefront we follow him to a park where he writes a suicide note and is prepared to end it all.
The Swans then appear from the mist and The Prince is entranced by the lead Swan, portrayed here by Jackson Fisch. Fisch is mesmerising and strikes the perfect balance of strength and elegance. As The Prince abandons any suicidal thoughts and engages in a truly sensual pas de deux with The Swan I was completely gobsmacked by the utter beauty unfolding before my eyes. The gracefulness of Fisch and Murray together was hypnotic and I had to remind myself to breath as I watched in awe.
Later at a party at the palace, a party is thrown into disarray by the arrival of The Stranger, a part also played by Fisch. The Stranger reminds The Prince of his beloved Swan, and he is instantly attracted to him. Unfortunately he is rebutted by The Stranger who is lewd and flirtatious and forms a passionate bond with The Queen rather than her son.
As the distress of the young Prince grows things turn violent and after drawing a pistol on his mother who is berating him a tussle ensues and The Girlfriend gets caught in the crossfire. The Prince is then confined to an asylum and is once again starved of affection from his mother.
As the ballet nears its conclusion The Prince's dreams of The Swan merge into reality as the Swans fill his bedroom in perhaps the strongest part of the entire piece. As the Swans turn on their lead and The Prince and things once again become violent and when The Queen enters she finds her son dead on the bed.
The Prince and The Swan are reunited in death and as the lights fade we see a tableau above the bed of The Prince being held tenderly in The Swan's arms. This was so powerful that even I was moved to tears, and as someone who doesn't show their emotions in public this is a huge thing.
There are not enough words to describe just how perfect this production is. Simply put it is the most sublimely beautiful thing you will see on the stage this year.
Everything from the costumes and set to the lighting design are an absolute triumph. The quality of the dancing is unparalleled and the exquisite choreography is performed with sheer precision.
It is truly an honour to watch such a fantastically flawless company and I simply cannot do justice to how good this production is in my review. Matthew Bourne is an absolute creative genius and his New Adventures troupe are some of the best dancers I have ever been privileged to see perform. If you want to see a well-oiled dance machine at it's very best then this is the show for you.
As with any Matthew Bourne production, as you look around the stage during the ensemble pieces you see a myriad of stories unfolding which is just joyous and is just one of a thousand reasons why you can never watch his shows just once!
SWAN LAKE continues performances at Theatre Royal Plymouth until Saturday 16th November. Ticket availability is extremely limited. Click here to secure the final tickets. Truly majestic productions like this have to be seen to be believed.
Neill Kovacic-Clarke
All views are my own and I pride myself on being honest, fair and free from influence. Theatre is subjective and it is important to remember that all views expressed are just those of one person.
My ticket for this performance of Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake was gifted by the Theatre Royal Plymouth who invited me to watch the show in exchange for my honest review. The fact that my ticket was gifted played no part in the content of my review or the star rating given.
CAST AT THIS PERFORMANCE:
Jackson Fisch as The Swan / The Stranger; Stephen Murray as The Prince; Nicole Kabera as The Queen; Bryony Wood as The Girlfriend; James Lovell as The Private Secretary
THE SWANS: Matthew Amos; Alistair Beattie; Ben Brown; Jamie Duncan-Campbell; Perreira de Jesus Franque; Callum Mann; Leonardo McCorkindale; Jarrod McWilliams; Mukeni Nel; George-Murray Nightingale; Henry Ondrak-Wright; Nikolas Shikkis; Xavier Andriambolanoro Sotiya; Tom Barnes Standing
THE PRINCESSES: Anna-Maria de Freitas; Savannah Ffrench; Kurumi Kamayachi; Eleanor McGrath; Maisie Mwebe Eve Ngbokota; Molly Shaw-Downie
All other roles played by members of the company
RUNNING TIME (approx):
2 hours 20 minutes, including interval
CONTENT WARNINGS:
Violence, Blood depictions; Gun imagery; Loud noises: Intoxication: Suicide; Death; Flashing lights
Comments