Ballet Manila's Swan Lake

Last November 15, I found myself at the Aliw Theater for the gala night of Ballet Manila's Swan Lake. This piece is a true classic, interpreted and reinterpreted countless times in various ballet companies everywhere. This year, Ballet Manila decided to feature Maxim Chashchegorov and Katherina Markowskaja from the Bavarian State Ballet. (You know it's getting real when you can't pronounce their names anymore.)

What I love about Swan Lake is that most people think it's just frilly tutus and feathers and sequins and swans, but it is actually quite dark and haunting. 

It has just enough intrigue, temptations and bad things stemming from people who give in to these temptations. I love how it ends with the Swan Queen taking her life. Ballet Manila, however, went with the happy ending, with the Swan Queen dying with Prince Siegfried. I forgave it, given it involved confetti and them "flying" to heaven, together.

I wore black in support of #TeamBlackSwan Now that I see this, I am realizing that I didn't have enough smoke in my eyes, and my lipstick was not dark enough. Oh well. It's the fierceness inside that counts...

 

Speaking of the Black Swan, I was very impressed with Katherina's portrayal. This role is marked with consecutive fouettés, and that she did. Truly consecutively. I felt like she subscribed to UnliFouettés before going on stage. I guess, it comes with years of practice and true passion for dance.

 

I was also amazed with Maxim. He was very toned, almost buff, but when he danced, I could have sworn he didn't have any bone whatsoever in his body. He just flew around the stage, seemingly featherless. (And very dreamy. Hihi. Despite the fact that he's wearing white tights...or is it because of it?)

Something has to be said with the production design. It was amazing. My photos do not do them any justice at all. I love the attention to detail, which I guess in the end, is what really the audience notices and what completes the feel of the spectacle.

I was humming to Tchaikovsky's Dance of the Swans for weeks to follow. It's one thing to have a Taylor Swift song stuck in your head, but try being LSS to a song with no lyrics. I truly enjoyed this night and during the ride home I was developing the idea of a Swan Lake themed wedding. But that takes another blog post all together.

Renee is a third-year French major at the University of the Philippines Diliman. He is currently the Director for Publicity of the UP Le Club Français, an organization that aims to further the bilateral relations between the Philippines and France. 

He enjoys sad poems and green tea ice cream.