My blog inspiration book, “Everything I Need to Know I Learned From a Little Golden Book” reminds us to “Take in some culture once in awhile.” There is nothing more cultural than the ballet Swan Lake. In fact, this love story is the pinnacle of classical ballet with the demanding technique of the dance for the principle dancer who takes on the roles of both Odette (White Swan) and Odile (Black Swan). In 2018, I was mesmerized by the beauty, athleticism of the dance and powerful pairing of Tchaikovsky's live score in PBT's performance. PBT is bringing Swan Lake back May 6 through May 15, 2022 giving us all a second chance to be awestruck by the fairytale.
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| Masterful performance ** |
Reflection of the PBS show in 2018
Even if you're new to ballet, the story in Swan Lake is easy to follow. As it unfolds you can’t help being overcome with the beauty and skilled dance in all four acts. In this ballet, an evil sorcerer casts a spell that turns a princess into a swan by day and human at night. The spell is only broken by true love (of course). The princess(Odette) and prince (Siegfried) fall in love but the sorcerer (Von Rothbart) sends his daughter (the Black Swan) to trick him into professing his love to this impostor which seals Odette's fate as a swan forever. This is a fairy tale drama to match the fairy tale dance.
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| Swans dance in unison** |
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| Four swans dance in unison with speeding precision on point** |
Odette(Amanda Cochrane)* fluttered her arms like a bird and seemed to be on point forever with so much grace. The stage was often filled with dancers in white who were easily identified as swans with one arm raised and with a slightly flexed hand resembling the neck of the bird. Then the dancers in sets of four, with hands clasped, moved in unison with speeding precision across the stage on point- amazing!
Not to be outdone by the swans in the Act 1 and 3, the men filled the stage with power jumps and multiple turns at the prince’s 21st birthday party and in the Great Palace Hall. I am not sure how many times I leaned over to the wide eyed little girl beside me and said, “that’s amazing !”
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| Prince and Black Swan |
There was just so much to take in and it was all augmented by the beautiful set and sound of the full PBT Orchestra (listen to the Swan theme here). It was a classical night to be in awe of the dance. I am ready to be enchanted again by PBT's fairytale 4 years latter.
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| fairytale night in 2018! |
(Pittsburgh Ballet Theater's Swan Lake runs from May 6, 2022 through May 15, 2022 Benedum Center. For tickets go to www.pbt.org )
Spiritual Refection
Look at the birds in the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? (Matthew 6: 26)
Other Sources
Look at the birds in the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? (Matthew 6: 26)
Other Sources
Pittsburgh Ballet Theater https://www.pbt.org/