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Article: Gender-bending 'Swan Lake': a new twist on an old favorite.(all-male production of ballet 'Swan Lake')
- Article from:
- Dance Magazine
- Article date:
- January 1, 1997
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1997 Dance Magazine, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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At first glance, the scene is arresting. A flock of swans fills the stage. But they're not pretty ballerinas in tutus, tights, and pointe shoes. Rather, all - including Odette - are bare-chested, barefoot men in feathery, knee-length shorts. The scene defies nineteenth-century Russian ballet convention and yet, somehow, after further examination, it seems completely natural.
That's just the conclusion that designer Lez Brotherston came to when collaborating with choreographer Matthew Bourne on their production of Swan Lake for the British dance company Adventures in Motion Pictures. Brotherston had turned a classic on its ear before; he collaborated with Bourne ...