Photo : Swan Lake Solo © Doriane Rio
Swan Lake Solo
Olga Dukhovnaya
(Ukraine)
Solo deconstruction and reworking of a legendary ballet
From the age of 8
Since 1877, Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake has been a monument of classical ballet. To transform this iconic romantic ballet, steeped in history in ex-Soviet countries, into a modern-day spectacle, a Ukrainian dancer and choreographer based in Rennes has taken the radical decision to break the piece down and put it back together. Working with Russian composer, Anton Svetlichny, this acrobatic reworking keeps looping and adapting to different venues, with the real ballet steps and movements, snippets and segments from the original music and choreography. We discover, spellbound, what is left of this legendary ballet once it has been stripped back and reinvented, in a brilliant and fun blend of genres, played by a single body lying horizontally.

In 2019, Ukrainian choreographer and dancer, Olga Dukhovnaya, was commissioned by the Moscow Museum of Modern Art to work on a large format with an orchestra and thirty-two dancers. With lockdowns and successive cancellations, this reworking transformed into a solo adaptation, which became an obvious and legitimate choice after Russia was totally cut off following its invasion of Ukraine. This political and historical dimension was already present in the collective subconscious of former Soviet countries where this music had been the official soundtrack to state funerals and large events.

Swan Lake is a legendary ballet, whether used as a propaganda tool or emblematic requiem. Here it is broken down and rebuilt like Lego bricks, erasing the lines between solos and ballet corps, channelling historic movements into a single body and freeing movements from their figurative state to empty them of emotional tragedy. In this magnificent choreographic and musical reworking (with an organic and electronic score by Russian composer Anton Svetlichny), staging and sets are cast aside, and only the initial form remains. Like in her work for Boris Charmatz or Maud Le Pladec, Olga Dukhovnaya offers a sincere and free-moving physical performance.

BIOGRAPHY

> OLGA DUKHOVNAYA (Ukraine)

Olga Dukhovnaya is a dancer, choreographer and teacher, born in 1984. She studied dance at P.A.R.T.S. in Brussels before working in Moscow from 2006 to 2010 at the Russian Institute of Theatre Arts (GITIS) and the dance school TsEKh.  After winning the DanceWeb scholarship (ImpulsTanz, Vienna), in 2012, she began a Master’s degree in dance, creation and performance at the CNDC in Angers (Paris 8 University, School of Fine Arts of Angers), while also joining Boris Charmatz (Levée des conflits, Flip Book, Enfant, Manger) and Maud Le Pladec (Democracy, Concrete) as a performer.  She created Korowod (2012), a performance inspired by Russian traditional dance, and then Sœur (2018), in collaboration with the artist Robert Steijn. She also performs for Ashley Chen, for video installations by Dutch artist Aernout Mik, and has run workshops with Konstantin Lipatov. Olga Dukhovnaya is originally from Ukraine but speaks Russian. She is a strong advocate for her right to be “Ukrainian” as one of her many origins and geographies (Jewish, Russian, French, Ukrainian). She now lives in Rennes.

DISTRIBUTION

Olga Dukhovnaya (interprète et chorégraphe), Alexis Hedouin (chorégraphie), Anton Svetlichny (musique), Guillaume Jouin et Marion Regnier (lumière, costume), François Maurisse (regard extérieur), d’après une libre interprétation du Ballet de Tchaikovsky,

Billetterie en ligne
Friday 08 July 2022
20:00 > 20:40
Théâtre du Vieux Saint-Etienne, Rennes
Saturday 09 July 2022
20:00 > 20:40
Théâtre du Vieux Saint-Etienne, Rennes

40mn
5€ / 2€ Sortir !
Métro : Sainte-Anne • Bus : C1, C5, 9, et 12, Arrêt Sainte-Anne • Vélo Star : Sainte-Anne
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