On Saturday and Sunday, May 21st and 22nd, 2016, The Atlantic City Ballet presented their version of Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake at The Claridge Hotel’s Celebrity Theater in Atlantic City, NJ. Featuring spellbinding choreography by Phyllis Papa, the talented members of the ACB transported an enthusiastic audience of all ages to another world — a world of magnificent music, magic, and movement.
Swan Lake opens with Prince Siegfried (Tullio Cata), who is celebrating his 21st birthday at a party in his honor. There, he enjoys the company of many of his royal friends who entertain him with a courtly version of a waltz.
Next, we see the ladies of the court who dance at the party in celebration of the Prince’s birthday.
The mood is light and happy as Siegfried is poised to become King.
Beautiful maidens leap for the stars to celebrate the special occasion.
The Queen (Lidia Arena) presents her son, the Prince, with a crossbow for his birthday but dampens the joyful mood of the celebration when she informs him that, in order to become King, he must choose a bride at the royal costume ball which is to take place the following evening.
Realizing his carefree days will soon come to an end, Siegfried leaves the party to seek the solace of the woods. Crossbow in hand, he enters a moonlit clearing in the forest where he discovers a magnificent flock of swans.
Drawing his bow, Siegfried is amazed to see one of the swans magically transform into a beautiful girl, Odette (Nagisa Suzuki).
Putting down his weapon, Siegfried gently moves closer to get a better look but still manages to startle the girl. Odette, impressed by the Prince’s perceived gentleness, makes her way over to him.
Odette reveals to Siegfried that she is under the spell of the wicked sorcerer, Von Rothbart (Kristaps Kikulis). According to Odette, she will be condemned to be a swan for the rest of her life unless a young man swears his eternal love for her.
At that moment the sorcerer, Von Rothbart, appears. Siegfried reaches for his crossbow, but Odette makes a move to protect Von Rothbart, knowing that if the sorcerer dies, she will die too.
Von Rothbart disappears and as dawn approaches, the sorcerer’s spell compels Odette to return to her guise as a swan.
The next day, eligible young princesses from all over the world arrive at the royal costume ball to be introduced to Prince Siegfried so that he may choose his bride.
Each princess presents her national dance for the entertainment of the Prince and the Queen, starting with a contingency of Spanish dancers.
Napolitan dancers leap in the air in an effort to impress the royal family and guests.
A Czardas princess tries everything in her power to attract the Prince with her sultry dance steps.
The Prince, however, is uninterested in any of the princesses’ advances as his heart has already been promised to the beautiful Odette.
The sound of trumpets break the Prince’s reverie in order to announce the arrival of an univited guest to the ball. It is Von Rothbart with his daughter, Odile (Tsubasa Nozaki), whom the evil sorcerer has magically transformed to look exactly like Odette. Siegfried is seduced by her.
Completely smitten, Siegfried announces his intention to marry Odile.
Thrilled his evil plan has succeeded, Von Rothbart asks Siegfried to swear fidelity to Odile.
Just after taking the oath, Siegfried glimpses Odette weeping at the castle door, after which she suddenly vanishes. The Prince, realizing he’s been a victim of a terrible plot, immediately rushes over to the lake where he discovers Odette, completely distraught at his betrayal, and he begs her to forgive him.
Odette tells Siegfried she must kill herself or she will forever remain under Von Rothbart’s power. Siegfried declares he will die with her, knowing that is the only way the magic spell can be broken.
With dawn approaching, Von Rothbart appears.
Siegfried and Odette react to Von Rothbart’s appearance by throwing themselves into the lake. In doing so, they vanquish the evil sorcerer, eliminating the power he once had over them. They also leave the swans gazing into the night sky as Siegfried and Odette ascend into the heavens together, forever united in eternal love.
A thrilling and beautiful performance, The Atlantic City Ballet’s production of Swan Lake is just one of many spectacular programs in the ACB’s current repertoire, which also includes the stunning Visions and the exciting Carmen, in addition to such other popular classics as Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker, and many more.
For information on The Atlantic City Ballet’s upcoming season, please go to acballet.org. For information on future performances at Atlantic City’s Celebrity Theater, located in the Claridge Hotel — including The Duprees on July 2–3, 2016 — please go to claridge.com.
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