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Review: Stripped back Swan Lake lets dancers shine – but some might miss the spectacle

Each intricate move accentuated the bird-like qualities of the swans. And when the girls danced together as the wedge of birds it's where it was at its best.

The Scottish Ballet take Swan Lake to HM Theatre, Aberdeen
The Scottish Ballet take Swan Lake to HM Theatre, Aberdeen

Less is more, or that’s at least how the saying goes.

And it was definitely what The Scottish Ballet was hoping for in their modern interpretation of Swan Lake.

I am a huge fan of the ballet company and make a point of attending as many of their performances as I can.

And while I thoroughly enjoyed the opening night at HM Theatre on Thursday, I have to admit I have seen better from them.

Their goal was to strip back the original tale and produce something which reduced the ballet to its simplistic emotional and musical heart.

The staging was minimal, with no sign of a lake, the costumes were missing the classic tutus and the storyline was stripped of a number of the main characters.

Choreographer David Dawson wanted to tell a tale of a moody boy who falls in love with a magical woman but through powers of manipulation and seduction ends up betraying his swan queen.

Performer during Swan Lake at HM Theatre, Aberdeen.
The Scottish Ballet takes Swan Lake to HM Theatre, Aberdeen.

Dawson said by taking it back to its purest form he hoped the audience would be drawn to the dancers and he did so believing he could create a Swan Lake that modern audiences would relate to.

And I could see what he was trying to do.

The choreography itself, set to the wonderful Tchaikovsky score, was a delight.

Challenging. But each intricate move accentuated the bird-like qualities of the swans.

And when the girls danced together as the wedge of birds it’s where it was at its best.

The Scottish Ballet performers during the show.
The Scottish Ballet takes Swan Lake to HM Theatre, Aberdeen.

But for me, although I realised it was a deliberate move, I did miss that pizzazz.

Maybe it was modernised a bit too much.

Praise has to be given to all the dancers who were graceful and impressive as always.

But the star of the show for me, and it would seem for the rest of the audience by their reaction at the final curtain, was the orchestra that delivered the world-renowned score impeccably.

Taking up a hefty section of the stalls, they were absolutely as much of last night’s performance as the dancers on stage.

Scene from the Swan Lake ballet at HMT Aberdeen.
The Scottish Ballet takes Swan Lake to HM Theatre, Aberdeen.

As I left I caught up with friends in the foyer who loved the different approach, so I’d urge anyone with an interest to go along and judge for themselves.

One, who was a ballet first-timer, told me “I absolutely loved it, it was beautiful”.

I’ll still be back next time, but I’ll be hoping for a bit more of that glamour that can turn a night at the ballet into the finest bit of escapism you can get.

It’s on until Saturday, April 20 and you can buy tickets at aberdeenperformingarts.com

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