Lac, Ballet by J-Ch. Maillot
Swan Lake by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky is among the most famous ballets in the repertoire, and it has had its fair share of adaptations and re-imaginings over the years. Lac by Jean-Christophe Maillot is one of the boldest and most intriguing works that drew inspiration from this classic source. After numerous successful showings around the globe, this modern take on Swan Lake is coming to Gran Teatro La Fenice in Venice. The performance of Lac features Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo and a revised score performed live by La Fenice Orchestra.
The fairy tale feel of Swan Lake carries over into Lac, but Jean-Christophe Maillot takes some creative liberties with his storytelling, both with in choreography and plotline. Instead of the warlock Baron von Rothbart, the main antagonist in Lac is a woman in black. She abducts Prince Siegfried’s childhood sweetheart Odette, only to return years later with her and the temptress Odile. Siegfried is forced to choose between the feelings he has harboured all his life and a new attraction that is threatening to turn his heart around. The psychological drama packed into the ballet’s storyline finds its perfect reflection in Maillot’s eclectic choreography which mixes neo-classical and modern dance forms into a visually captivating performance.
Admirers of Tchaikovsky’s original Swan Lake ballet are sure to notice some discrepancies between the Russian Romantic’s score and Maillot’s rearrangement. To match the updated choreography and the sharpened, minimalist visual design by Ernest Pignon-Ernest, Lac features the favourite melodies and passages in new, unexpected sequences and arrangements. In sum, one of the latest adaptations of the Russian classic is bound to pique the interest and imagination of audiences at Gran Teatro La Fenice in Venice. It manages to take a well-known and admired piece of art, like a precious diamond and repolish it into a completely new audience experience. Lac is a Venetian ballet evening that is full of surprises.