Swan Lake Background and History

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The concept of Swan Lake was born in Moscow, in the spring of 1875, when the Bolshoi Theater commissioned the ballet from the 35-year-old composer Peter Illyich Tchaikovsky, then living in the city. Tchaikovsky worked fast on his first ballet. He wrote two acts in August 1875; he returned to the piece and wrote the last two acts in January 1876. In March of that year, Swan Lake’s first choreographer, Julius Reisinger, began to compose the ballet and in February 1877, it premiered.

Mythologies of swans were presumably familiar to Tchaikovsky and his artistic friends, who no doubt discussed the idea of the swan as a symbol of womanhood at its purest. The legend of the Swan-Maiden goes back for centuries, appearing in differing forms in both eastern and western literature. Women who turn into birds and vice versa were popular themes, and the swan was particularly favored due to its grace when swimming in the water. The ancient Greeks considered the swan to the bird closest to the Muses. When Apollo was born at Delos, the event was celebrated by flights of circling swans.

Swan Lake was the first ballet set to the score of a symphonic composer. At this time, scores for ballets were almost always written by composers known as "specialists" - composers who were highly skilled at scoring the light, decorative, melodious, and rhythmically clear music that was at that time in vogue for ballet. Tchaikovsky studied the music of these "specialists" before setting to work on Swan Lake.

Tchaikovsky drew on previous compositions in for his Swan Lake score. He made use of material from The Voyevoda, an opera that he had abandoned in 1868, in Swan Lake's Grand Adagio (aka the Love Duet), Waltz of the Prospective Fiancées, and the Entr'acte of the fourth scene. According to Tchaikovsky's nephew, Tchaikovsky originally created the famous Swan's Theme for a little ballet called "The Lake of the Swans" he had written at his home for the amusement of his relatives.

Throughout the long and complex performance history of Swan Lake the 1895 edition of Petipa, Ivanov, and Drigo has served as the definitive version from which nearly every staging has been based. Nearly every ballet master or choreographer who has re-staged Swan Lake has sought to make modifications to the ballet's scenario, while still maintaining to a considerable extent the traditional choreography for the dances, which is regarded as virtually sacrosanct. Likewise, over time the role of Siegfried has become far more prominent, due largely to the evolution of men’s ballet technique.

Swan Lake

Roles

• The Sovereign Queen
• Prince Siegfried, her son
• Wolfgang, his tutor
• Odette, the White Swan
• Von Rothbart, an evil sorcerer
• Odile, his daughter
• Master of Ceremonies
• Foreign Princesses
• Court gentlemen and ladies, friends of the prince, heralds, guests, pages, villagers, servants, swans, cygnets

Synopsis

Act I

A magnificent park before a castle

In the castle’s garden, Prince Siegfried celebrates his coming of age with his friends. The Queen presents her son with the gift of a crossbow, and tells him he must choose a bride from among the invited princesses arriving for the birthday celebration the following day. After his friends have departed, the Prince sees a flock of white swans pass by. Bewitched by the beauty of these proud birds, the Prince decides to go hunting.

Act II

A mountainous wild place, surrounded by forest. In the distance a lake, on the right side of which are ruins.

The lake and its surrounding shores are under the control of the villain, Von Rothbart. In the form of a bird of prey, he rules over Princess Odette and her followers. Odette and the maidens have been turned by Rothbart’s dark magic into swans; only at night can they take human form. The Princess can be freed only by a man who loves none but her. Siegfried falls passionately in love with the Swan Princess Odette, and swears to be this man and break the spell.

~Intermission~

Act III

An opulent hall in the castle

At the court of the Queen the next day, Siegfried can think only of Odette, and none of the princesses are able to captivate the Prince during the celebration. Two uninvited guests arrive, a mysterious nobleman and his daughter. After some time, the Prince believes that he recognizes in the nobleman’s daughter, his beloved Odette. In reality, it is Von Rothbart and his daughter, Odile. The Prince’s dance with Odile seals the fate of the Prince and his beloved Odette: he is completely bewitched by Odile’s magic. The Prince announces to the guests that he has chosen the beautiful stranger to be his bride. The Prince then realizes he has been fooled and that he has broken the oath he had sworn to Odette. In his utter remorse, he runs to the lake to find Odette.

~Intermission~

Act IV

Same scene by the lake as in Act II

In vain the white swans on the lake shore try to console their mistress, Odette. Shattered by the fact that the Prince has broken his promise, she has resigned herself to her fate. The Prince appears so that he can explain how Von Rothbart and Odile deceived him. Odette forgives the Prince, and again they declare their love for each other. Von Rotbart, who is powerless against this love, seeks his revenge through a duel with Siegfried. After the fight, the evil Von Rothbart dies, and love prevails.

What to look for:

• Often in fairy tales there are good and evil characters. Can you identify any of these in Swan Lake?
• What is imaginary in this ballet, that doesn’t happen in real life?
• There are many famous parts to this ballet. One is the legendary role of what is called the corps de ballet, or group ensemble of the story. In this case it’s the swans, who must all dance in unison and precise lines as they move in the specified steps (choreography). Watch to see if they all move there arms, legs, bodies, and heads together to make a beautiful seamless image.
• What groupings do they make? Are they symmetrical? How many in each group?
• Another famous part of Swan Lake are the roles of Odette and Odile, the white swan and the black swan, respectively. How is each different from the other? She is sometimes played by the same dancer. Is that the case in the performance you are seeing?
• Do the swans appear to be happy? What gestures or movements make you think so?
• In plays, usually it’s the words that tell the story. In dance, it’s usually the movement, the choreography, the music, the lighting and sometimes pantomime. What parts were effective in this production, and which were not? Did you understand the story and emotions of the characters?

Swan Lake Questions:

1. Who was your favorite character? Why?
2. Who was your least favorite character? Why?
3. Which costume was your favorite?
4. What other stories are you familiar with that involve swans?
5. What do the swans in these stories have in common?
6. How would you interpret the way a swan moves using your body?
7. Could you write your own story that includes a swan as pivotal character?