Swan Lake at the Mayflower Theatre Southampton Review
Swan Lake
Mayflower Theatre, Southampton
26-30 January 2016
Reviewed by Angela Paull
Last night I went to see Swan Lake, performed by the Birmingham Royal Ballet, at the Mayflower Theatre in Southampton. The Mayflower is in central Southampton and surrounded by several car parks. I tend to park in Grosvenor Street Car Park as it has a flat rate charge of £2 between 6pm and midnight – perfect for theatre goers!
The theatre itself has a good selection of bars and a restaurant. It has lovely padded seating (though I confess I was a little stiff legged by the end of last night’s performance as it was quite a long one and there is not masses of leg room).
I have never seen a ballet before but it has always been on my “bucket list” so the opportunity to see Swan Lake, possibly the most well-known and iconic ballet, was not to be missed.
As I only had a vague idea of the storyline the programme was a must have as it gives a written summary of the tale. This is essentially the story of an impossible love, eventually doomed to end in tragedy.
The performance was in four Acts with two intervals (after Acts II and III). In the first Act we learn that Prince Siegfried’s father has passed away and that, as the new King, he must find a bride. The set and costumes were superb and the supporting cast should be given full credit for their powers of stillness. They created an amazing tableau to showcase the dancing talents of the soloists. Special mention should also be made of William Bracewell, as Benno, it was almost as though he literally had springs in his feet to manage the leaps and jumps he achieved.
Act II probably represented what most people picture when they think of ballet. A beautifully hypnotic 33 minutes when Prince Siegfried first sees Princess Odette at the lake. The evil magician Baron von Rothbart has transformed her and her companions into swans, who only revert to human form between the hours of midnight and dawn. The stage was full of perfectly synchronised dancers complementing the graceful routines of the principal dancers, Yasuo Atsuji & Nao Sakuma. The former lifted the latter as though she were the weight of a feather – the whole thing looked utterly effortless and was totally mesmerising.
After the interval, we returned to the castle for Act III – where the Prince must choose his new bride. Once again the costumes were superb and we had a number of group dances which had in turn an almost Russian and Spanish feel. It was fun, visually eye catching and involved some unexpected pyrotechnics at the end, when the Prince realises he has been duped by an interloper and rushes off in search of his true love Odette.
After a further brief interval, we returned for Act IV. The stage was set back at the lake and swathed in a deep swirling layer of dry ice. As if by magic the entire troupe of “swans” emerged from beneath the mists in a moment that made the entire audience gasp in delight. This was followed by some impressive lighting that made me feel like I was in the eye of a real storm before a beautiful 20 minute routine followed with the tragic finale literally pulling at the heartstrings.
The orchestra were incredible throughout the performance and I left the theatre feeling as though I had attended a real event.
Highly recommended but, unless you are already familiar with the story, I definitely recommend that you allow enough time to read the synopsis before the performance begins, so that you can make sense of everything going on throughout.
Rating: 4/5
Tickets cost from £10.75 to £48.50 (booking fees may apply).
Swan Lake is at the Mayflower Theatre in Southampton until 30 January 2016. For more information or to book tickets click here or call the box office on 02380 711811.
Mayflower Theatre, Commercial Road, Southampton, SO15 1GE | 02380 711811
