Review: San Francisco Ballet’s Swan Lake February 28, 2009
San Francisco Ballet in Tomasson's Swan Lake. © Erik Tomasson
Ever since casting was released for San Francisco Ballet’s world premiere of Helgi Tomasson’s Swan Lake, the internet dance world has been a-twitter with the six lead couples cast to dance the role, half of them dancing for one night only. The ultimate role of a lifetime for the ballerina as Odette/Odile, it’s a role that encompasses the theatrical characterization two very different yet similar charcters (the swan-woman Odette and her impersonator, the evil Odile), as well as the toughest of technical standards including the infamous 32 fouettes. Everyone has their favorite ballerinas that are almost guaranteed to be amazing in the role (including everyone’s favorite Tan and Kochetkova, they’re mine too!), but I was more curious about my dark horse favorite for the role, principal Sarah Van Patten. Not the flashiest of dancers, I’m always struck by her subtlety and transparency, where every emotion shows up strikingly on her face and eyes (including nervousness). Desipte not being a technical warhorse, her performance is steeped in moving musicality and lavish detail, including everything from a look, the angle of her face and neck, and the completion of the curve of her arms. In a one night only performance last night, she blew my expectations out of the water in a stellar performance in a deeply touching portrayal of a traditional tragic heroine with a modern edge.
Principal Sarah Van Patten, headshot taken from the SF Ballet website. © David Allen
With breathless phrasing and a lovely unforced pause-and-go timing to her dancing highly attuned to the music, Van Patten and partner Ivan Popov shows us how sexy an adagio can be. Theirs is a gentle love story of two people falling in love for the first time. Spilling over with innocence and glowing sensuality, there is palpable tension in Odette’s skittish fear and a slow growing trust of a character who learns to love after being hurt and imprisoned by her captor, Von Rothbart. Van Patten’s Odette is no wilting wallflower, but an oppressed prisoner with a lot of fight still left in her. Amidst her melancholy, Odette flashes moments of intense passion betraying her still very much-alive heart as she clasps Prince Siegfried’s hands around her torso in a tight, desperate hug. Van Patten’s gifted acting comes very much into play as her trust in Prince Siegfried is measured out slowly over the course of the second act, growing organically, imperceptibly. Odette’s ultimate surrender is careful, not overtly farflung or fervent, with a tinge of uncertainty and regret still present in her backbend trust falls into his arms. The effect is heartbreaking. It is a richly layered portrayal that foreshadows an unhappy ending, yet an intimate picture of a girl’s vulnerability who simply allows herself to feel and to love.
As the seductress Odile, Van Patten shot daggers out of her eyes as she dares Prince Siegfried to love her, yet her transparency that served her well as Odette betrays her as Odile. Van Patten’s driving energy wavers slightly in the technical allegro parts, occasionally performing the steps without completely commanding them. Falling a little short of the 32 single fouettes (so sue me, I counted), Van Patten’s Odile still flirts dangerously with a smoldering fire. I could almost hear evil godmother cartoon laughter in her final backbend with Prince Siegfried holding her hand where she knows she triumphed over his heart, and knows that she deserved it.
In addition to Van Patten’s singular performance, lots of other bright performances peppered the stage. Principal Ivan Popov finally seemed to arrive on the scene in his pas de deux with Van Patten, serving as a strong partner and dancing with vibrant intensity. His solos however were still plagued by uncertain air positions and landings, but his tall elegant lines were noble. Anthony Spaulding was a forbidding Von Rothbart in his fiercely long lines and magnetic charisma, despite his costume that made him look like a mix between a swamp creature and a Goth drag queen. There were too many smaller roles to mention, but included a well-assured Dores Andre and dynamic Martyn Garside as the Neapolitan couple, and Frances Chung, Charlene Cohen, Matthew Stewart, and James Sofranko as the spirited Russian court. The swans made the lakeside scenes my favorite part of this production, dancing cohesively with elegance and serene power.
If you couldn’t tell already, the dancing made the performance for me. Although magnificent in scope, the production itself was a bit uneven, with an extremely static first act that may actually be the most boring thing I’ve seen on the War Memorial Opera House stage. The deathly slow music, conducted by Paul Hoskins, really didn’t help the staid choreography. Peasant dances are supposed to be energetic, communal, warm, celebratory, no? Instead, the choreography felt a bit stiff, overly simple, and too cutesy. The sets by Jonathan Fensom, although grand in scale, were more sterile rather than awe-inspiring. The palace set was the most successful that brought audience applause with its spiraling ascending staircases, and it served as an apt metaphor for Prince Siegfried’s distinguished yet empty life. The costumes, also by Jonathan Fensom, were shiny and new – Odile’s costume glinted cruelly in the light, and the Russian princesses wore particularly pretty sparkly dresses. The swan headpieces took some getting used to, looking unflatteringly like mullets, especially Odile’s black one.
In conclusion, it can be a good or bad thing that the entire ballet falls on the shoulders of the dancer dancing the role of Odette/Odile, and the chemistry with her partner. In the case on Thursday’s performance, it was a very very good thing. Van Patten’s heartbreaking vulnerability and quiet sensuality made her Odette unforgettable, with Popov’s intensity and strength making their partnership a cohesive portrayal of a love that transcends time.
Did you see it? Thoughts? Are you a Giselle or Swan Lake person? If you saw other Odette/Odiles, please leave your impressions in the comments – I’m dying to know how they did! I’ll be attending one more performance this weekend, yay.
Other links:
- San Francisco Chronicle. ADDED: Rachel Howard’s review of all six Odette/Odiles, here. ”By far the most scintillating Odette/Odile was Sarah Van Patten.”
- Danceviewtimes
- San Francisco Examiner
- Link for American Ballet Theatre’s Swan Lake DVD, with Gillian Murphy and Angel Corella
- San Francisco Ballet’s website
From the San Francisco Ballet Youtube channel. Check out Val Caniparoli’s wig at 1:15; he was very funny as the tutor. There’s a brief clip of Sarah Van Patten in rehearsal a little before 3:00 as Odette.
Thanks for the detailed write-up. When SFB were here in New York last Fall I was struck by both the powerful grace of Sarah van Patten’s dancing and also by how wonderfully her face ‘reads’ even from the back row of the orchestra.
Hi Philip – I agree, I always notice her eyes – her look, and her connection to the dancers around her. She’s a lovely dancer, yet not in a flashy, in-your-face extroverted way but in a quieter, sensual way. It’s too bad she’s only cast as Odette once! I’ll have to wait at least a year to see her Odette again.
I hate to say it, but even from my orchestra seat, Sarah Van Patten’s forgettable performance left me cold. I didn’t feel she had enough emotional depth to carry off Odette never mind Odile and while some find her dancing subtle, I think it verges on boring. Popov didn’t do much for me either. Oddly in this production Von Rothbart is not as menacing as I remember. The corp however, were exceptional. Throughout Thursday night’s performance I couldn’t help but remember seeing Swan Lake with Muriel Mafre, Yuan Yuan Tan and best of all, Evelyn Cisneros and Tony Randazzo. Too each his own I guess.
Hi Amy, thanks for commenting! I hear that a lot about Sarah Van Patten, and I find her as polarizing as Veronika Part of ABT. I happen to enjoy her performance (and I think it even took me a few times to see her, b/c she didn’t stand out before then), but as you say, to each their own. I understand why people think she’s boring, even though I don’t agree all the time. I think it’s fun to talk about, and I’m always interested in what others think of the same performances that I see (and the ones I don’t see!). Thanks for sharing your opinion.
Evelyn Cisneros must have been wonderful. Maffre seems like an unconventional choice, but I’m sure she was fab. I would have liked to have seen Joanna Berman as Odette/Odile – I saw her perform once in college in Romeo and Juliet, did you see her Swan Lake?
I wish I had seen Joanna do it. She was one of those performers, much like Evelyn Cisneros, that made you feel she was dancing just for you. I was very curious what others thought of Sarah Van Patten’s performance so it has been great discovering your site. I do like the new production, though it received somewhat of a mixed review from Rachel Howard at the Chronicle. I look forward to reading her take on the various casts tomorrow.
I saw Sarah Van Patten’s performance on Thursday night and was amazed by her performance. She is one of the most musical dancers I have ever seen. She fills the stage with her intensity, sensuality and musical artistry. It is a shame she only had one opportunity to dance this role. For her first time she was outstanding. Imagine if she had a chance to do 5 shows instead of one?! Van Patten is also a very versatile dancer. She seems to be extremely comfortable in contemporary works but it was good for her to demonstrate she can handle the ultimate ballerina role with such aplomb.
Hi Katrina, I totally thought it was a waste that there was only one chance to see her perform as well, and now we have to wait 1+ years to see her again. I wished I had a chance to recommend it to others so that others could experience it for themselves.
Amy, I’m looking forward to Rachel Howard’s take as well. Six Odettes/Odiles – I’m a little bit envious that she got to see all six, yet it must have been a marathon. I caught a glimpse of her at the Thurs performance.
I think Sarah Van Patten has finally matured into an artist. Most new pricipal dancers pay too much attention to techniques, but when one has achieved great technique, and begins to emerge as an artist, the result is wonderful to watch.
I don’t mean disrecpectful to you, this is your site and I don’t feel like writing my own Swan Lake review here. However, as I saw it, this SFB new Swan Lake production was screaming “help!” here and there. The first act left so much to be desired. The adagio in second act was merely ok, and the third act was simply a … joke. So I said it, hope SFB fans don’t hate me.
I admire Mr. Tomasson so much, but when it comes to new choreography, I don’t think Mr. Director is a great choreographer. Sometimes, one would show great intelligence by knowing his own limitation, and bringing help in order to succeed. A 3-million-dollar budget and this is t he “best” one could come up with, I am disappointed.
As I recall a while back when I saw Lucia Lacarra (whe she was a SFB principal) dance the white swan Adagio, it was breathtakingly beautiful and emotionally touching. Although she tended to wing her wrists like crazy (and she still does), it was perhaps because of her dancing, I had come to appreciate the Adagio much more.
I’m always open to hear about what other people thought of the show! Lucia Lacarra must have been wonderful. That annoys me too – the winging wrists – Lorena Feijoo tends to do that sometimes. Is it a pet peeve, and why do I find it so annoying??
What an excellent review, Jolene — so richly detailed! I always love to hear about different versions of Swan Lake and it sounds like this production, unfortunately, was lacking. But, you’re right, it’s the dancing that counts anyway. ABT dancers have saved many an underwhelming production for me
Oh, and I count the fouettes too 
Oh good, I’m glad I’m not the only one who counts fouettes.
I wish you could have seen it, Tonya. It would have been interesting to hear what you thought, especially since Sarah Van Patten’s as polarizing as ABT’s Veronika Part.