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By Dave Massey twitter.com/BrumHour
Birmingham Royal Ballet’s Swan Lake at
Birmingham Hippodrome
A Prince is urged to marry after the death of his father and while suitors may appear, the prince is more interested in the wildlife at the lakeside.
This magical classic ballet fantasy is presented by Birmingham Royal Ballet with music of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky by Royal Ballet Sinfonia. Set over four distinct acts with two intervals.
After seeing several works from Birmingham Royal Ballet over the past 15 months including, The Nutcracker, Beauty and the Beast and Hobson’s Choice, I was more than excited to see Swan Lake told in this classical style.
Powerful music reinforces the sheer strength and talent on the stage as this exciting tale unfolds before our eyes. My favourite scenes were by the lake seeing the cygnets perform in synchronous was beautiful and the music very compelling.
I loved seeing Celine Gittens as Odette/Odile with Tyrone Singleton as the Prince, Eilis Small as the Queen Mother and Jonathan Payn as the Baron. Their skills shine and the make their years of training speak volumes in their precise movements.
There were actual gasps from the audience in the final act as the smoke filled the stage, most of the sounds coming from the awe of younger people in the theatre.
The sets are broad pillars with cascading stairs which double as the entrance to the lake. Lighting shifts us from outside to the interior of a castle ballroom. The costumes feel reach and lavish with more than a hint of chess-playing with the black and white tones.
Swan Lake is at Birmingham Hippodrome until Saturday 29th February. Book tickets here: birminghamhippodrome.com/calendar/brb-swan-lake-2
This isn’t a sponsored post.
When not writing about theatre for BrumHour, or producing Interval Theatre for Brum Radio (Tuesdays 3pm) brumradio.com/intervaltheatre,
Dave Massey can be found eating crisps and tweeting about Birmingham for #BrumHour.
