Los Angeles Ballet to Debut Swan Lake

(Los Angeles, CA) – Los Angeles Ballet [LAB] Artistic Directors Thordal Christensen and Colleen Neary are pleased to present the company’s fifth full-length production, Swan Lake, to an expanded line-up of venues. New venues include Carpenter Performing Arts Center in Long Beach and Valley Performing Arts Center in Northridge in addition to Royce Hall at UCLA, Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center and Alex Theatre in Glendale.

Choreographed by Artistic Directors Thordal Christensen and Colleen Neary after the traditional revival credited to Petipa and Ivanov, LAB’s Swan Lake will feature Principal dancers Allynne Noelle and Allyssa Bross in the dual role of Odette/Odile at alternate performances. LAB Principal dancers Christopher Revels and Kenta Shimizu will dance the role of Prince Siegfried, also at alternate performances. Guest dancer Akimitsu Yahata, principal dancer with the New National Ballet of Japan, will dance the role of the Jester at select performances. Additionally, the ballet will feature the full company, as well as students from Los Angeles Ballet School.

“With its magnificent Tchaikovsky score, Swan Lake enjoys a rich history and is considered one of the quintessential full length ballets.” says Christensen. “Swan Lake provides a wonderful showcase for our entire company, particularly our Principal Dancers Allynne Noelle and Allyssa Bross,” adds Neary.

We are bringing this masterpiece a poetic quality that will tell this love story with tenderness and passion, through the music and our choreography,” says Neary, adding, “[Thordal and I] have a deep relationship with this ballet, from our experience of dancing the leading roles together, which was an important part in our performing careers.”

The story of Odette, a princess transformed into a swan by an evil sorcerer’s curse, Swan Lake was not well received when it originally premiered. It was not until the Petipa/Ivanov revival which has served as the basis for most subsequent interpretations that it became so popular, most recently serving as the basis for the film Black Swan.

LAB is currently in its sixth season. This May, LAB will be back with its much-anticipated and innovative NextWaveLA, featuring four World Premieres by distinguished California based choreographers Kitty McNamee, Sonya Tayeh, Stacey Tookey and Josie Walsh. LAB continues to build a repertoire that underscores the creative leadership of its artistic directors, presenting timeless classics as well as innovative choreography from today’s contemporary artists.