The Russian Ballet Theatre brings ‘Swan Lake’ To Our Area

January 26, 2022 by HughE Dillon Leave a comment

RUSSIAN BALLET THEATRE LAUNCHES STUNNING NEW PRODUCTION OF BELOVED SWAN LAKE WITH FOUR PERFORMANCES COMING TO PENNSYLVANIA AND NEW JERSEY

The updated classic will feature unforgettable engagements in Sewell, Trenton and Newark, New Jersey, as well as a stop in Reading in Central Pennsylvania

Russian Ballet Theatre is thrilled to hit the road and tour with Swan Lake for the first time since 2019. Swan Lake is presented by Co-Producers Sasha Gorskaya and Gulya Hartwick. The production team includes Choreographer Nadezhda Kalinina, Production Designer Sergey Novikov, SFX Makeup Designer Irina Strukova, and Principal Ballet Mistress Tatyana Linnik. Prima Ballerina Olga Kifyak will dance the lead roles of Odette (The White Swan) and Odile (The Black Swan) – a unique and bold casting choice for the American 2022 tour. The cast also includes the amazing talents of Evgeny Svetlitsa as Prince Siegfried, Mikhail Ovcharov as Jester, Vasili Bogdan as Rothbart.

Award-winner Irina Strukova’s grand artistry will give a magical touch to this already magnificent production. Known for her film makeup creations (Netflix, HBO, Crazy Rich Asians), Strukova has created hair designs and special effects makeup that, together with the dazzling costumes, further enlighten this whimsical and glittering fantasy.

According to the press release Russian Ballet Theatre’s production of Swan Lake is replete with the visual splendor and virtuoso dancing global audiences have come to expect from classical Russian dance. The 2022 tour delights by pairing time-honored Russian traditions with some delightful new inspirations.

“Although we are telling the classic story of ‘Swan Lake,’ there are tweaks here and there that make the show new and exciting,” said co-producer Gulya Hartwick. “We have all new choreography. Usually there is one jester, we have five of them. We did what we could to make the production more lively and more colorful.”

RBT’s international ballet corps will draw talent from ten different countries for this new tour. The dancers will bring Kalinina’s choreography to life along with new exquisite hand-painted sets and 150 new hand-sewn costumes, all designed by the young, accomplished Sergei Novikov (Mariinsky Theatre, Omsk State Music Theatre, St. Petersburg State Music Hall) in the century-old tradition of the great theatrical masters.

“Swan Lake” takes one of Tchaikovsky’s most popular scores and mixes it with a love story inspired by Russian and German folk tales.

“Swan Lake” will be hitting the stage in each city for one night only. Tickets are now on sale for the dates, which include Sunday, Feb. 13, in Newark, New Jersey, at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center; Tuesday, Feb. 15, in Trenton at the Patriots Theater at the War Memorial; Wednesday, Feb. 16, in Sewell, South Jersey, at Investors Bank Performing Arts Center; and Thursday, Feb. 17, in Reading at the Santander Performing Arts Center. All theaters have amble parking nearby.

On Wednesday, February 16th, Swan Lake dance within minutes of Philadelphia, in South Jersey with a one-night only stop in Sewell, New Jersey at Investors Bank Performing Arts Center. This stop is just minutes from South Philly, over the Walt Whitman Bridge, at a venue that is well-known for hosting local and regional dance and ballet recitals and competitions. Showtime for this performance is 7:30pm. Tickets range $39 to $89. The Investors Bank Performing Arts Center is one of the Philadelphia region’s largest indoor venues, located at 519 Hurffville-Cross Keys Rd., Sewell, NJ 08080. For venue and health updates, visit https://www.wtps.org/Page/15570

Tickets for performances listed are available at www.russianballettheatre.com/tickets and also by visiting Ticketmaster. All venues offer onsite or nearby parking. All venues are accessible by public transportation.

For more information visit Russian Ballet Theatre’s official website, at www.russianballettheatre.com

Philadelphia

Swan Lake – Luncheon, Dress Rehearsal – Sledding on the Art Museum Steps A Snow Story

March 6, 2015 by HughE Dillon

Yesterday we finally got the significant snow storm that had been predicted a handful of times this winter but never materialized.

Although the storm closed schools and the mayor enacted the emergency snow route, which really cut down on the traffic in Center City, there were some people out and about doing business as usual.

I headed to Estia the delicious Greek restaurant located on Locust Street across from the Academy of Music. Thursday was the Swan Lake Luncheon and Dress Rehearsal.

The luncheon was lovely, and it was nice to see many ballet fans make it to the event. The luncheons are open to the general public for a low ticket price. They include a ballet talk, as well as a ticket to see the dress rehearsal. The dress rehearsal is a neat experience, as often the Angel and others are still advising the dancers as well as working with the orchestra artistically.

For those who didn’t live in Center City they took public transportation without too many delays.

The Pennsylvania Ballet has promoted David Gray to executive director. Gray was chosen due to his leadership style and experience in ballet, nonprofit and financial communities, the Philadelphia-based organization’s Board of Trustees announced Thursday. (source)

Dr. Laura Katz Rizzo is the Program Director of the Bachelor of Fine Arts Program in Dance and an Assistant Professor of Dance at Temple University and

author of “Dancing the Fairy Tale.” She spoke of the history of Philadelphia Ballet, which is covered in the book.

Ángel Corolla, Pa Ballet Artistic Director and ballet patron Jane Al Mashat @estia before dress rehearsal of Swan Lake.

Usually for the dress rehearsal the auditorium is full of students, but the snow storm quashed that today. The rehearsal started promptly at 1PM and was very enjoyable.

In commissioning this work especially for its 40th Anniversary Season, Pennsylvania Ballet’s goal
was to create a signature version of Swan Lake that would achieve popular and critical success,
attract traditional ballet fans as well as new audience members, and build a lasting legacy in the
dance world to be enjoyed by generations to come. (PS my regular camera broke last week and I am shooting with my back up camera, the Nikon D7000. I think the photos of the ballet this month are so much better than the D610)

Choreography: Christopher Wheeldon (after Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov)
Music: Peter Ilyitch Tschaikovsky

Costumes: Jean-Marc Puissant
Sets: Adrianne Lobel
Lighting: Natasha Katz
Running Time: Approximately 2:40 (four acts with two intermissions)

Pennsylvania Ballet History:
This is the largest and most expensive production ever created by the Company, but it is not its
first Swan Lake. Pennsylvania Ballet has performed several full-length versions of Swan Lake
(with choreography after Petipa/Ivanov) during its history. The Company also performed
George Balanchine’s Swan Lake, Act II in 1994 and 1998.

The Company made its international debut with Christopher Wheeldon’s Swan Lake in August
2005 at the Edinburgh International Festival. The production had its world premiere at the Academy of Music in June 2004 and was performed by the Company in October 2005 and March 2011. Pennsylvania Ballet dancers performed in the feature film Black Swan, released in December 2010.

Pennsylvania Ballet brings the world’s most renowned ballet,
Swan Lake, to the Academy of Music stage, March 5-8 and 14-15, presented by Bank of America. In
addition, Zachary Hench, Principal Dancer, will also celebrate his formal retirement from Pennsylvania Ballet at the afternoon performance on March 8th.

The re-envisioning of Christopher Wheeldon’s Swan Lake has been supported by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage. Pennsylvania Ballet’s season sponsors include DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel, The Sporting Club at the Bellevue, and US Airways. Pennsylvania Ballet receives support from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts – a state agency funded by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency – and The Philadelphia Cultural Fund. Groups of 10 or more get discounts and great seats! Ask about special talks with staff and dancers and dining options near the theater for your group. For tickets and more information,

contact Group Sales Manager Arajua Backman at 215.587.6921 or abackman@paballet.org.

Swan Lake
DATES: March 5-15, 2015

VENUE: Academy of Music

TICKETS: $30 – $125, 215.893.1999 or paballet.org

After the show I headed home to see if folks were sledding on the Art Museum Steps

Snowy #Selfie

Parc is gearing up for spring, which is only 3 weeks away. Can’t wait.

Rittenhouse Square is always breathtaking.

And the win goes to the Philly Folding Table Sled Team

A video posted by Adam Wallacavage (@adam_wallacavage) on Mar 5, 2015 at 5:41pm PST

I never made it to the art museum steps I was so cold, but I found this on the internet and thought what a hoot. As I usually say you need a good 6 – 8 inches of snow for a good ride on the steps. It seemed a little sparse, but it didn’t stop these folks.