Dance review: Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake exudes feral masculinity

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Dance review: Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake exudes feral masculinity

This Swan Lake is utterly revolutionary, with the swans danced by men who ooze predatory, feral masculinity.

By Reviewed by Jordan Beth Vincent

Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake
New Adventures
Regent Theatre
Until October 25
★★★★☆

Since its premiere in 1995, choreographer Matthew Bourne's Swan LakeSwan Lake is utterly revolutionary, predominantly because the swans that attract the Prince (Chris Marney) are not danced by women, but by men who ooze predatory, feral masculinity.

Revolutionary: <i>Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake</i>.

Revolutionary: Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake.

If Bourne's men are dangerous, his female characters are duplicitous; the Queen (Stephanie Billers) withholds her affection from her son but seduces men in her court, and the Prince's Girlfriend (Anjali Mehra) is a vacuous, social-climbing bimbo. The women provide much of the comedic relief, from the Girlfriend's hilarious faux pas at the theatre to a spectacularly exaggerated send-up of a narrative ballet.

Bourne's choreography, particularly for the men, relishes big movements - long stretches of the arms and legs and soaring leaps across the stage, as well as preening animalistic gestures. His choice to choreograph the audible exhalations and inhalations of the dancers balances moments of rawness and individuality in the company with the menacing imperative of a pack mentality. It is clear in these moments why this production is beloved around the world.

The leading Swan (Jonathan Ollivier, who also appears in human guise as the Stranger) is a representation of the freedom the Prince desperately desires, but this Swan Lake is also about awakening sexuality, and the homoerotic relationship between the Prince and the Swan/Stranger ranges from curious and lustful to cruel and vindictive.

The Swan/Stranger is ultimately both a destructive and redemptive force, and here Bourne has remained faithful to the duality at the core of Swan Lake's traditional narrative.

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