Swan Lake

History

Origins of the ballet

The authorship of the original libretto remains uncertain, and the precise origins of the narrative are likewise obscure. Russian and German folk traditions have been suggested as possible sources, among them Johann Karl August Musäus’s 1784 tale The Stolen Veil, from the collection Volksmärchen der Deutschen and based on the Swan maiden myth. These accounts, however, bear only limited resemblance to the storyline of the ballet.

As reported by other sources, the story does not have a specific author, as it was shaped through ballet conventions. Several critics have noted that many ideas in the libretto appear in legends from various countries, and that a German setting was also frequent in nineteenth-century ballets. Siegfried's character resembles Albrecht from Giselle, as both are deceived into betraying their beloved, and the ball to choose a bride appears in La fille du Danube. The swan maidens may be variations of the wilis and sylphs common in Romantic ballets. The story also has connections with Daniel Auber’s opera Le lac des fées.

One hypothesis proposes that the original choreographer, Julius Reisinger, a Bohemian and thus plausibly acquainted with The Stolen Veil, was responsible for devising the story. An alternative view attributes the authorship to Vladimir Petrovich Begichev, then Director of the Moscow Imperial Theatres, possibly in collaboration with Vasily Geltser, a danseur of the Bolshoi Theatre. A surviving libretto copy indeed bears Begichev’s name. However, as the first published libretto diverges from Tchaikovsky’s score in numerous passages, some scholars have suggested that it may have been prepared by a journalist, based upon observations of the early rehearsals, in line with the contemporary custom of reporting new operatic and balletic productions together with their scenarios in the press.

Another often-cited possibility proposes that the story was invented by Tchaikovsky himself, who reportedly used a similar plot for his earlier short ballet The Lake of the Swans (Ozero lebedei). Even the protagonists’ names were already the same: his brother Modest and his niece Tatiana played Siegfried and Odette, respectively. According to some theories, Tchaikovsky was influenced by Richard Wagner’s operas, which he generally held in high regard. In Der Ring des Nibelungen, there is also a character named Siegfried who, by unknowingly betraying his beloved, ultimately causes his own death. The names of the guests at the ball are reminiscent of characters in Tannhäuser. Even greater parallels can be observed in Lohengrin, such as the use of the swan as a symbol of purity, the presence of an evil sorcerer, the use of heraldic trumpets to signal supernatural events, and the heroine’s death as the result of an unintended betrayal.

Tchaikovsky's influences

From around the time of the turn of the 19th century until the beginning of the 1890s, scores for ballets were almost always written by composers known as "specialists" who were highly skilled at scoring the light, decorative, melodious, and rhythmically clear music that was at that time in vogue for ballet. Tchaikovsky studied the music of "specialists" such as the Italian Cesare Pugni and the Austrian Ludwig Minkus, before setting to work on Swan Lake.

Tchaikovsky had a rather negative opinion of the "specialist" ballet music until he studied it in detail, being impressed by the nearly limitless variety of infectious melodies their scores contained. Tchaikovsky most admired the ballet music of such composers as Léo Delibes, Adolphe Adam, and later, Riccardo Drigo. He would later write to his protégé, the composer Sergei Taneyev, "I listened to the Delibes ballet Sylvia ... what charm, what elegance, what wealth of melody, rhythm, and harmony. I was ashamed, for if I had known of this music then, I would not have written Swan Lake." Tchaikovsky most admired Adam's 1844 score for Giselle, which used the Leitmotif technique: associating certain themes with certain characters or moods, a technique he would use in Swan Lake and, later, The Sleeping Beauty.

Tchaikovsky drew on previous compositions for his Swan Lake score. According to two of Tchaikovsky's relatives – his nephew Yuri Lvovich Davydov and his niece Anna Meck-Davydova – the composer had earlier created a little ballet called The Lake of the Swans at their home in 1871. This ballet included the famous Leitmotif, the "Swan's Theme" or "Song of the Swans". He also made use of material from The Voyevoda, an opera he had abandoned in 1868. Another number which included a theme from The Voyevoda was the Entr'acte of the fourth scene and the opening of the Finale (Act IV, No. 29). The Grand adage (a.k.a. the "Love Duet") from the second scene of Swan Lake was fashioned from the final love duet from his opera Undina, abandoned in 1873.

By April 1876 the score was complete, and rehearsals began. Soon Reisinger began setting certain numbers aside that he dubbed "undanceable". Reisinger even began choreographing dances to other composers' music, but Tchaikovsky protested and his pieces were reinstated. Although the two artists were required to collaborate, each seemed to prefer working as independently of the other as possible. At times, Tchaikovsky actually ended up turning to Alina Bryullova, a family acquaintance, for advice on how he should write music for ballet; she later recalled that due to her lack of expertise she "could give him practically no advice."

Composition process

Tchaikovsky's excitement with Swan Lake is evident from the speed with which he composed: commissioned in the spring of 1875, the piece was created within one year. His letters to Sergei Taneyev from August 1875 indicate, however, that it was not only his excitement that compelled him to create it so quickly but his wish to finish it as soon as possible, so as to allow him to start on an opera. Respectively, he created scores of the first three numbers of the ballet, then the orchestration in the fall and winter, and was still struggling with the instrumentation in the spring. By April 1876, the work was complete. Tchaikovsky's mention of a draft suggests the presence of some sort of abstract but no such draft has ever been seen. Tchaikovsky wrote various letters to friends expressing his longstanding desire to work with this type of music, and his excitement concerning his current stimulating, albeit laborious task.

Performance history

Date: 4 March (OS 20 February) 1877

Place: Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow

Balletmaster: Julius Reisinger

Conductor: Stepan Ryabov

Scene Designers: Karl Valts (acts 2 & 4), Ivan Shangin (act 1), Karl Groppius (act 3)

Date: 27 January 1895

Place: Mariinsky Theatre, St. Petersburg

Balletmaster: Marius Petipa (acts 1 & 3), Lev Ivanov (acts 2 & 4)

Conductor: Riccardo Drigo

Scene Designers: Ivan Andreyev, Mikhail Bocharov, Henrich Levogt

Costume Designer: Yevgeni Ponomaryov

1880 and 1882, Moscow, Bolshoi Theatre, staged by Joseph Hansen after Reisinger, conductor and designers as in première

1901, Moscow, Bolshoi Theatre, staged by Aleksandr Gorsky, conducted by Andrey Arends, scenes by Aleksandr Golovin (act 1), Konstantin Korovin (acts 2 & 4), N. Klodt (act 3)

1911, London, Ballets Russes, Sergei Diaghilev production, choreography by Michel Fokine after Petipa–Ivanov, scenes by Golovin and Korovin

1934, London, Royal Opera House company premiere, The Vic-Wells Ballet

1946, London, Royal Opera House premiere, Sadler's Wells Ballet

Instrumentation

Swan Lake is scored for the typical late 19th-century large orchestra:

Strings: violins I and II; violas, violoncellos; double basses, harp

Woodwinds: piccolo; 2 flutes; 2 oboes; 2 clarinets in B♭, A and C; 2 bassoons

Brass: 4 French horns in F; 2 cornets in A and B♭; 2 trumpets in F, D, and E; 3 trombones (2 tenor, 1 bass); tuba

Percussion: timpani; snare drum; cymbals; bass drum; triangle; tambourine; castanets; tam-tam; glockenspiel; chimes

Roles

Princess Odette (the Swan Queen, the White Swan, the Swan Princess), a beautiful princess, who has been transformed into a white swan

Prince Siegfried, a handsome Prince who falls in love with Odette

Baron Von Rothbart, an evil sorcerer, who has enchanted Odette

Odile (the Black Swan), Rothbart's daughter

Benno von Sommerstern, the Prince's friend

The Queen, Prince Siegfried's mother

Wolfgang, his tutor

Baron von Stein

The Baroness, his wife

Freiherr von Schwarzfels

Freiherr von Schwarzfels' wife

A herald

A footman

Court gentlemen and ladies, friends of the prince, heralds, guests, pages, villagers, servants, swans, cygnets

Variations to characters

By 1895, Benno von Sommerstern had become just "Benno", and Odette "Queen of the Swans". Also Baron von Stein, his wife, and Freiherr von Schwarzfels and his wife were no longer identified on the program. The sovereign or ruling Princess is often rendered "Queen Mother".

The character of Rothbart (sometimes spelled Rotbart) has been open to many interpretations. The reason for his curse upon Odette is unknown; several versions, including two feature films, have suggested reasons, but none is typically explained by the ballet. He is rarely portrayed in human form, except in act 3. He is usually shown as an owl-like creature. In most productions, the couple's sacrifice results in his destruction. However, there are versions in which he is triumphant. Yury Grigorovich's version, which has been danced for several decades by the Bolshoi Ballet, is noted for including both endings: Rothbart was defeated in the original 1969 version, in line with Soviet-era expectations of an upbeat conclusion, but in the 2001 revision, Rothbart plays a wicked game of fate with Siegfried, which he wins at the end, causing Siegfried to lose everything. In the second American Ballet Theatre production of Swan Lake, he is portrayed by two dancers: a young, handsome one who lures Odette to her doom in the prologue, and a reptilian creature. In this version, the lovers' suicide inspires the rest of Rothbart's imprisoned swans to turn on him and overcome his spell.

Odile, Rothbart's daughter usually wears jet black (though in the 1895 production, she did not), and appears only in act 3. In most modern productions, she is portrayed as Odette's exact double (though the resemblance is because of Rothbart's magic), and therefore Siegfried cannot be blamed for believing her to be Odette. There is a suggestion that in the original production, Odette and Odile were danced by two different ballerinas. This is also the case in some avant garde productions.

Synopsis

Swan Lake is generally presented in either four acts, four scenes (primarily outside Russia and Eastern Europe) or three acts, four scenes (primarily in Russia and Eastern Europe). The biggest difference of productions all over the world is that the ending, originally tragic, is now sometimes altered to a happy ending.

Prologue

Some productions include a prologue that shows how Odette first meets Rothbart, who turns Odette into a swan.

Act 1

A magnificent park before a palace

[Scène: Allegro giusto] Prince Siegfried is celebrating his birthday with his tutor, friends, and peasants [Waltz]. The revelries are interrupted by his mother, the Queen [Scène: Allegro moderato], who is concerned about his carefree lifestyle. She tells him that he must choose a bride at the royal ball the following evening (some productions include the presentation of some possible candidates). He is upset that he cannot marry for love. His friend, Benno, and his tutor try to lift his troubled mood. As evening falls [Sujet], Benno sees a flock of swans flying overhead and suggests they go on a hunt [Finale I]. Siegfried and his friends take their crossbows and set off in pursuit of the swans.

Act 2

A lakeside clearing in a forest by the ruins of a chapel. A moonlit night.

Siegfried has become separated from his friends. He arrives at the lakeside clearing, just as a flock of swans lands [Scène. Moderato]. He aims his crossbow [Scène. Allegro moderato], but freezes when one of them transforms into a beautiful maiden named Odette [Scène. Moderato]. At first, she is terrified of him. When he promises not to harm her, she explains that she and her companions are victims of a spell cast by the evil owl-like sorcerer named Rothbart. By day they are turned into swans and only at night, by the side of the enchanted lake – created from the tears of Odette's mother – do they return to human form. The spell can only be broken if one who has never loved before swears to love Odette forever. Rothbart suddenly appears [Scène. Allegro vivo]. Siegfried threatens to kill him but Odette intercedes – if Rothbart dies before the spell is broken, it can never be undone.

As Rothbart disappears, the swan maidens fill the clearing [Scène: Allegro, Moderato assai quasi andante]. Siegfried breaks his crossbow, and sets about winning Odette's trust as they fall in love. But as dawn arrives, the evil spell draws Odette and her companions back to the lake and they are turned into swans again.

Act 3

An opulent hall in the palace

Guests arrive at the palace for a costume ball. Six princesses are presented to the prince [Entrance of the Guests and Waltz], as candidates for marriage. Rothbart arrives in disguise [Scène: Allegro, Allegro giusto] with his daughter, Odile, who is transformed to look like Odette. Though the princesses try to attract Siegfried with their dances [Pas de six], he has eyes only for Odile. [Scène: Allegro, Tempo di valse, Allegro vivo] Odette appears at the castle window and attempts to warn him, but he does not see her. He then proclaims to the court that he will marry Odile before Rothbart shows him a magical vision of Odette. Grief-stricken and realizing his mistake (he vowed only to love Odette), he hurries back to the lake.

Act 4

By the lakeside

Odette is distraught. The swan maidens try to comfort her. Siegfried returns to the lake and makes a passionate apology. She forgives him, but his betrayal cannot be undone. Rather than remain a swan forever, she chooses to die. He chooses to die with her and they leap into the lake, where they will stay together forever. This breaks Rothbart's spell over the swan maidens, causing him to lose his power over them and he dies. In an apotheosis, they, who transform back into regular maidens, watch as Siegfried and Odette ascend into the Heavens together, forever united in love.

1877 libretto synopsis

Prince Siegfried, his friends, and a group of peasants are celebrating his coming of age. His mother arrives to inform him she wishes for him to marry soon so she may make sure he does not disgrace their family line by his marriage. She has organized a ball where he is to choose his bride from among the daughters of the nobility. After the celebration, he and his friend, Benno, spot a flock of flying swans and decide to hunt them.

Siegfried and Benno track the swans to a lake, but they vanish. A woman wearing a crown appears and meets them. She tells them her name is Odette and she was one of the swans they were hunting. She tells them her story: her mother, a good fairy, had married a knight, but she died and he remarried. Odette's stepmother is a witch who wanted to kill her, but her grandfather saved her. He had cried so much over her mother's death, he created the lake with his tears. She and her companions live in it with him, and can transform themselves into swans whenever they wish. Her stepmother still wants to kill her and stalks her in the form of an owl, but she has a crown which protects her from harm. When she gets married, her stepmother will lose the power to harm her. Siegfried falls in love with her but she fears her stepmother will ruin their happiness.

Several young noblewomen dance at Siegfried's ball, but he refuses to marry any of them. Baron von Rothbart and his daughter, Odile, arrive. Siegfried thinks Odile looks like Odette, but Benno does not agree. He dances with her as he grows more and more enamored of her, and eventually agrees to marry her. At that moment, Rothbart transforms into a demon, Odile laughs, and a white swan wearing a crown appears in the window. Siegfried runs out of the castle.

In tears, Odette tells her friends Siegfried did not keep his vow of love. Seeing him coming, they leave and urge her to go with them, but she wants to see him one last time. A storm begins. He enters and begs her for forgiveness. She refuses and attempts to leave. He snatches the crown from her head and throws it in the lake, saying, "Willing or unwilling, you will always remain with me!" The owl flies overhead, carrying the crown away. "What have you done? I am dying!" Odette says, and falls into his arms. The lake rises from the storm and drowns them. The storm quiets, and a group of swans appear on the lake.

Alternative endings

Many different endings exist, ranging from romantic to tragic.

In 1950, Konstantin Sergeyev staged a new Swan Lake for the Mariinsky Ballet (then the Kirov) after Petipa and Ivanov, but included some bits of Vaganova and Gorsky. Under the Soviet regime, the tragic ending was replaced with a happy one, so in the Mariinsky and Bolshoi versions, Odette and Siegfried lived happily ever after.

In the version danced today by the Mariinsky Ballet, the ending is one of a "happily ever after" in which Siegfried fights Rothbart and tears off his wing, killing him. Odette is restored to human form and she and Siegfried are happily united. This version has often been used by Russian and Chinese ballet companies.

In the 1966 version Rudolf Nureyev choreographed for the Vienna State Ballet, Rothbart takes Odette away and leaves Siegfried to drown in the storm he created, leaving Odette in captivity.

In the 1986 version Rudolf Nureyev choreographed for the Paris Opera Ballet, Rothbart fights with Siegfried, who is overcome and dies, leaving Rothbart to take Odette triumphantly up to the Heavens.

In the 1988 Dutch National Ballet production, choreographed by Rudi van Dantzig, Siegfried realized he cannot save Odette from the curse, so he drowns himself. His friend, Alexander, finds his body and carries him.

In the 1988 version of the London Festival Ballet, Odette dies in Siegfried's arms, who carries her to the lake, where they both drown themselves. This breaks the curse and they are united in death.

Although the 1969 Bolshoi Ballet production by Yury Grigorovich contained a happy ending similar to the Mariinsky Ballet version, the 2001 revision changed the ending to a tragic one. Siegfried is defeated in a confrontation with the Evil Genius, who seizes Odette and takes her away to parts unknown before the lovers can unite, and Siegfried is left by himself at the lake. The major-key rendition of the main leitmotif and the remainder of the Apotheosis (retained in the 1969 production) are replaced with a modified, transposed repeat of the Introduction followed by the final few bars of No. 10/No. 14, closing the ballet on a dour note.

Structure

Tchaikovsky's original score (including additions for the original 1877 production), which differs from the score as revised by Riccardo Drigo for the revival of Petipa and Ivanov that is still used by most ballet companies, corresponds to this layout. The titles for each number are from the original published score. Some of the numbers are titled simply as musical indications, those that are not are translated from their original French titles.

Act 1

Introduction: Moderato assai – Allegro non-troppo – Tempo I

No. 1 Scène: Allegro giusto

No. 2 Waltz: Tempo di valse

No. 3 Scène: Allegro moderato

No. 4 Pas de trois

1. Intrada (or Entrée): Allegro

2. Andante sostenuto

3. Allegro semplice, Presto

4. Moderato

5. Allegro

6. Coda: Allegro vivace

No. 5 Pas de deux for Two Merry-makers (later fashioned into the Black Swan Pas de Deux)

1. Tempo di valse ma non troppo vivo, quasi moderato

2. Andante – Allegro

3. Tempo di valse

4. Coda: Allegro molto vivace

No. 6 Pas d'action: Andantino quasi moderato – Allegro

No. 7 Sujet (Introduction to the Dance with Goblets)

No. 8 Dance with Goblets: Tempo di polacca

No. 9 Finale: Sujet, Andante

Act 2

No. 10 Scène: Moderato

No. 11 Scène: Allegro moderato, Moderato, Allegro vivo

No. 12 Scène: Allegro, Moderato assai quasi andante

No. 13 Dances of the Swans

1. Tempo di valse

2. Moderato assai

3. Tempo di valse

4. Allegro moderato (later the famous Dance of the Little Swans)

5. Pas d'action: Andante, Andante non-troppo, Allegro (material borrowed from Undina)

6. Tempo di valse

7. Coda: Allegro vivo

No. 14 Scène: Moderato

Act 3

No. 15 Scène: March – Allegro giusto

No. 16 Ballabile: Dance of the Corps de Ballet and the Dwarves: Moderato assai, Allegro vivo

No. 17 Entrance of the Guests and Waltz: Allegro, Tempo di valse

No. 18 Scène: Allegro, Allegro giusto

No. 19 Pas de six

1. Intrada (or Entrée): Moderato assai

2. Variation I: Allegro

3. Variation II: Andante con moto (although titled as a variation, this number was likely meant to follow the Intrada and serve as the central Grande adage of the Pas de six after the Intrada but either composed to be out of sequence and published as such after the first variation)

4. Variation III: Moderato

5. Variation IV: Allegro

6. Variation V: Moderato, Allegro semplice

7. Grand Coda: Allegro molto

Appendix I – Pas de deux pour Mme. Anna Sobeshchanskaya

1. Andante

2. Variation I: Allegro moderato

3. Variation II: Allegro

4. Coda: Allegro molto vivace

No. 20 Hungarian Dance: Czardas – Moderato assai, Allegro moderato, Vivace

Appendix II – No. 20a Danse russe pour Mlle. Pelageya Karpakova: Moderato, Andante semplice, Allegro vivo, Presto

Act 4

No. 25 Entr'acte: Moderato

No. 26 Scène: Allegro non-troppo

No. 27 Dance of the Little Swans: Moderato

No. 28 Scène: Allegro agitato, Molto meno mosso, Allegro vivace

No. 29 Scène finale: Andante, Allegro, Alla breve, Moderato e maestoso, Moderato

Adaptations and references

Live-action film

The opening credits for the first sound version of Dracula (1931) starring Bela Lugosi includes a modified version of the Swan Theme from act 2. The same piece was later used for the credits of The Mummy (1932) as well as Murders in the Rue Morgue (1932) and is often used as a backing track for the silent film, Phantom of the Opera (1925).

The film I Was an Adventuress (1940) includes a long sequence from the ballet.

The documentary World Assembly of Youth features the New York City Ballet performing Black Swan at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York in August 1951

El lago de los cisnes (1953) is a short film directed by Francisco Rovira Beleta and shot at the Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona, featuring the participation of the International London Ballet. It is a screen adaptation of only the first two acts of the ballet.

Mastera russkogo baleta (1953) is an episodic film directed by Herbert Rappaport that presents cinematic adaptations of three famous ballets, the first of which is Swan Lake, with Galina Ulanova in the role of Odette.

Lebedinoe ozero (1957) is a ballet film choreographed by Asaf Messerer and directed by Zoja Tulub'eva, starring Maya Plisetskaya in the role of Odette.

The plot of the 1965 British comedy film The Intelligence Men reaches its climax at a performance of the ballet, with an assassination attempt on the ballerina portraying Odette.

The 1966 American political thriller film Torn Curtain directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Paul Newman and Julie Andrews contains a scene from the ballet Swan Lake. The lead couple of the film, played by Newman and Andrews, are escaping from East Berlin during the Cold War and attend a performance of the ballet as part of their escape plan. They are spotted and reported to the police by the lead ballerina (Tamara Toumanova) during the ballet performance. Their dramatic escape from the theatre during the ballet is a high point of the film.

Animated theatrical and direct-to-video productions

Swan Lake, episode 60 of the Japanese anthology series Manga Fairy Tales of the World (1976–1979), produced by Dax International.

Swan Lake (1981) is a feature-length anime produced by the Japanese company Toei Animation and directed by Koro Yabuki. The adaptation uses Tchaikovsky's score and remains relatively faithful to the story. Two separate English dubs were made, one featuring regular voice actors, and one using celebrities as the main principals (Pam Dawber as Odette, Christopher Atkins as Siegfried, David Hemmings as Rothbart, and Kay Lenz as Odile). The second dub was recorded at Golden Sync Studios and aired on American Movie Classics in December 1990 and The Disney Channel in January 1994. It was presently distributed in the United States by The Samuel Goldwyn Company. It was also distributed in France and the United Kingdom by Rouge Citron Production.

Swan Lake (1994) is a 28-minute traditional two-dimensional animation narrated by Dudley Moore. It is one of five animations in the Storyteller's Classics series. Like the 1981 version, it also uses Tchaikovsky's music throughout and is quite faithful to the original story. What sets it apart is the climactic scene, in which the prince swims across the lagoon towards Rothbart's castle to rescue Odette, who is being held prisoner there. Rothbart points his finger at the prince and zaps him to turn him into a duck – but then, the narrator declares, "Sometimes, even magic can go very, very wrong." After a moment, the duck turns into an eagle and flies into Rothbart's castle, where the prince resumes his human form and engages Rothbart in battle. This animation was produced by Madman Movies for Castle Communications. The director was Chris Randall, the producer was Bob Burrows, the production co-ordinator was Lesley Evans and the executive producers were Terry Shand and Geoff Kempin. The music was performed by the Moscow State Orchestra. It was shown on TVOntario in December 1997 and was distributed on home video in North America by Castle Vision International, Orion Home Video and J.L. Bowerbank & Associates.

The Swan Princess (1994) is a Nest Entertainment film based on the Swan Lake story. It stays fairly close to the original story, but does contain many differences. For example, instead of the Swan Maidens, we have the addition of sidekicks Puffin the puffin, Speed the tortoise, and Jean-Bob the frog. Several of the characters are renamed – Prince Derek instead of Siegfried, his friend Bromley instead of Benno and his tutor Rogers instead of Wolfgang; Derek's mother is named Queen Uberta. Another difference is Odette and Derek knowing each other from when they were children, which introduces us to Odette's father, King William and explains how and why Odette is kidnapped by Rothbart. The character Odile is replaced by an old hag (unnamed in this movie, but known as Bridget in the sequels), as Rothbart's sidekick until the end. Also, this version contains a happy ending, allowing both Odette and Derek to survive as humans once Rothbart is defeated. It has eleven sequels, Escape from Castle Mountain (1997), The Mystery of the Enchanted Treasure (1998), Christmas (2012), A Royal Family Tale (2014), Princess Tomorrow, Pirate Today (2016), Royally Undercover (2017), A Royal MyZtery (2018), Kingdom of Music (2019), A Royal Wedding (2020), A Fairytale is Born (2023), and Far Longer than Forever (2023) which deviate even further from the ballet. None of the films contain Tchaikovsky's music.

Computer/video games

The 1988 NES video game Final Fantasy II used a minor portion of Swan Lake just before fighting the Lamia Queen boss. In the WonderSwan Color and later versions the portion is longer.

The 1990 LucasArts adventure game Loom used a major portion of the Swan Lake suite for its audio track, as well as incorporating a major swan theme into the storyline. It otherwise bore no resemblance to the original ballet.

The 1991 DMA Design puzzle game Lemmings used "Dance of the Little Swans" in its soundtrack.

The 1993 Treasure platform game McDonald's Treasure Land Adventure uses a portion of Swan Lake as background music for one of its levels.

The 2008 Nintendo DS game Imagine Ballet Star contains a shortened version of Swan Lake. The main character, who is directly controlled by the player of the game, dances to three shortened musical pieces from Swan Lake. Two of the pieces are solos and the third piece is a pas de deux.

The 2009 SEGA video game Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games includes Swan Lake in its figure skating competition.

The 2015 game Five Nights at Freddy's 3 contains a music box version of a piece from Swan Lake.

The 2016 Blizzard Entertainment game Overwatch contains two unlockable costumes for the character Widowmaker based on Odette and Odile.

The 2020 Nintendo Switch game Paper Mario: The Origami King features a comedic ballet production of the song, as well as a punk remix.

The 2022 game Signalis contains a cassette tape the player can find that plays a section of Swan Lake.

Dance

The Swedish dancer/choreographer Fredrik Rydman has produced a modern dance/street dance interpretation of the ballet entitled Swan Lake Reloaded. It depicts the "swans" as heroin addict prostitutes who are kept in place by Rothbart, their pimp. The production's music uses themes and melodies from Tchaikovsky's score and incorporates them into hip-hop and techno tunes.

Literature

Amiri & Odette (2009) is a verse retelling by Walter Dean Myers with illustrations by Javaka Steptoe. Myers sets the story in the Swan Lake Projects of a large city. Amiri is a basketball-playing "Prince of the Night", a champion of the asphalt courts in the park. Odette belongs to Big Red, a dealer, a power on the streets.

The Black Swan (1999) is a fantasy novel written by Mercedes Lackey that re-imagines the original story and focuses heavily on Odile. Rothbart's daughter is a sorceress in her own right who comes to sympathise with Odette.

The Sorcerer's Daughter (2003) is a fantasy novel by Irina Izmailova, a retelling of the ballet's plot. The boyish and careless Siegfried consciously prefers the gentle, equally childlike Odile, while the stern and proud Odette is from the very beginning attracted to Rothbart (who later turns out to be the kingdom's rightful monarch in hiding).

Swan Lake (1989) is a children's novel written by Mark Helprin and illustrated by Chris Van Allsburg, which re-creates the original story as a tale about political strife in an unnamed Eastern European country. In it, Odette becomes a princess hidden from birth by the puppetmaster (and eventually usurper) behind the throne, with the story being retold to her child.

Music

British instrumental band The Cougars had a #33 UK hit with the single "Saturday Nite at the Duck-Pond", which used music from Swan Lake by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The song achieved some notoriety for being banned by the BBC. The reason for the ban was reported in the musical press, saying Saturday Nite At The Duck Pond was "a travesty of a major classical work".

Japanese instrumental rock group Takeshi Terauchi & Bunnys recorded this on their 1967 album, Let's Go Unmei.

Belgian band Wallace Collection quote from Act 2 Scene 10 in their track "Daydream" (1969).

British ska band Madness featured a ska version in 1979 on their debut album One Step Beyond...

British post-punk band Public Image Ltd's 1979 single Death Disco borrows elements of the main theme. The track appears on their 1979 album Metal Box under the title Swan Lake.

South Korean group Shinhwa re-imagines the main theme into a hip-hop k-pop song "T.O.P. (Twinkling of Paradise)" (1999)

Los Angeles group Sweetbox uses the main theme for the chorus of their song "Superstar" from the 2001 album Classified.

German singer Jeanette Biedermann uses the Swan Lake melody structure for her 2001 single release "How It's Got To Be".

Spanish symphonic metal band Dark Moor borrows elements on the song "Swan Lake", the first track of their 2009 album Autumnal.

A reggae version of the Swan Lake ballet appears on the 2017 album Classical Made Modern 3.

Canadian metal band The Agonist has made an a cappella version of act 2's "Scène. Moderato", which is included in their second studio album, Lullabies for the Dormant Mind.

Musicals/opera

Odette – The Dark Side of Swan Lake, a musical written by Alexander S. Bermange and Murray Woodfield, was staged at the Bridewell Theatre, London in October 2007.

In Radio City Christmas Spectacular, The Rockettes do a short homage to Swan Lake during the performance of the "Twelve Days of Christmas (Rock and Dance Version)", with the line "Seven Swans A-Swimming".

Billy Elliot the Musical incorporates the most famous section of Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake in a dance number, in which the main character dances while shadowed by his future, adult self.

The musical Anastasia includes a scene in which several of the main characters attend a performance of Swan Lake in Paris near the show's climax. The four characters sing about their inner conflicts and desires as Tchaikovsky's score blends into the musical's melodies, the dancers onstage representing both the ballet's characters and the thoughts of each singer in turn.

The top of the third act of the opera The Abduction of Figaro (1984) includes a parody of Swan Lake where Odile is portrayed as a Carmen Miranda character.

Television

The story was adapted in 1977 in the episode "Swan Lake" of the anime anthology series Manga Fairy Tales of the World. The opening title card cites a German folktale as its source, but in fact the episode follows the libretto quite faithfully and even uses Tchaikovsky's music.

During the era of the Soviet Union, Soviet state television preempted large announcements with video recordings of Swan Lake on four infamous occasions. In 1982 state television broadcast recordings following the death of Leonid Brezhnev. In 1984 recordings preempted the announcement of the death of Yuri Andropov. In 1985, recordings preempted the announcement of the death of General Secretary Konstantin Chernenko. The final and most oft-cited instance of the use of Swan Lake in this context was during the August 1991 Soviet coup attempt leading up to the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

When independent Russian news channel TV Rain was forced to shut down due to censorship laws caused by the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the station chose to end its final newscast with Swan Lake in a reference to its use in 1991.

Princess Tutu (2002) is an anime television series whose heroine, Duck, wears a costume reminiscent of Odette's. She is a duck transformed by a writer into a girl (rather than the other way around), while her antagonist, Rue, dressed as Odile, is a girl who had been raised to believe she is a raven. Other characters include Mytho in the role of Siegfried, who is even referred to by this name towards the end of the second act, and Drosselmeyer playing in the role of Rothbart. The score of Swan Lake, along with that of The Nutcracker, is used throughout, as is, occasionally, the Petipa choreography, most notably in episode 13, where Duck dances the climactic pas de deux alone, complete with failed lifts and catches.

In the second season of the anime Kaleido Star, a circus adaptation of Swan Lake becomes one of the Kaleido Stage's most important and successful shows. Main character Sora Naegino plays Princess Odette, with characters Leon Oswald as Prince Siegfried and May Wong as Odile.

In episode 213 of The Muppet Show, Rudolf Nureyev performs Swine Lake with a giant ballerina pig.

Symbolism

In the 2020s, Swan Lake became a symbol of protest in Russia. The symbolism dates to the failed Soviet coup of 1991. On August 19 of that year, as tanks rolled into Moscow, state television aired the entire ballet on loop. Communist hardliners then announced that they had seized control of the country from Mikhail Gorbachev, whom they had arrested. Boris Yeltsin responded by climbing on a tank in central Moscow and urging citizens to turn out in protest. For three days, thousands of protesters stood off the army, after which the coup leaders relented. Within four months, the Soviet Union was gone.

In 1991, there was a tradition of interrupting regular programming by airing the ballet on loop when the government was in crisis: it happened with the death of Leonid Brezhnev in 1982, while a successor was selected, and again with the deaths of Yuri Andropov in 1984 and Konstantin Chernenko in 1985. Swan Lake thus became "a sign of political instability and upheaval."

Selected discography