Swan Lake takes Rebirth in Odissi
As the curtain goes up, we see 21 swans on the large stage. They are young, beautiful dancers from the Sanjali Centre for Odissi Dance, Bengaluru, of the well-known Odissi dancer Sharmila Mukherjee.
As the dancers, dressed in a white costume, sway to the brilliant music composed by Praveen D Rao. Swan Lake, a popular Russian ballet, is transformed into a gripping Odissi production, Hansika.
Hansika is about Princess Odette who turns into a swan during the day and a woman by night. She, along with her companions, was playing beside the lake when Odile, Odette’s evil sister challenges Odette to a dance competition with her and gets angry after she loses. Odette laughs at her. She is also a sorcerer and curses her sister.
The curse can only be broken when true love engulfs Odette. This happens through Prince Siegfried who sees Odette at night dancing beside the lake as a woman.
However, the story takes a twist and Odette and Siegfried cannot be united due to Odile’s vicious plans.
The one-hour dance ballet is packed with almost all the human emotions woven around it – passion, love, jealousy, and so on. The performance began with the classical soundtrack of Swan Lake which set the mood for the rest of the simple story.
Swan Lake was a ballet written by the Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in 1875-76. It revolves around the story of Odette, a Russian princess who has been transformed into a swan by an evil sorcerer.
‘Hansika’ is about two sisters who are at loggerheads over a handsome prince. Good woman versus the evil woman has a lot of psychological depth and complexity. The life story of Odette and her sister is the story of one virtuous woman becoming a victim of a jealous evil one.
Many dancers, dressed in white, could effectively convey the message, be it humans or animals, the emotions are the same. While the dancers danced in Odissi style, there were traces of ballet movements which did not become an aberration but only added to the aesthetic appeal.
Excellent choreography by Sharmila and costumes by Aloka D Souza and Vijaya Kumar were the highlights of this gripping ballet and music ensemble made it pleasing to the ears. The focus was more on the group formations on the stage rather than on specific movements.
Praveen D Rao has used various instruments like sitar, flute, violin etc. and the traditional mardala, the primary percussion instrument for Odissi.
As the dancers, dressed in a white costume, sway to the brilliant music composed by Praveen D Rao. Swan Lake, a popular Russian ballet, is transformed into a gripping Odissi production, Hansika.
Hansika is about Princess Odette who turns into a swan during the day and a woman by night. She, along with her companions, was playing beside the lake when Odile, Odette’s evil sister challenges Odette to a dance competition with her and gets angry after she loses. Odette laughs at her. She is also a sorcerer and curses her sister.
The curse can only be broken when true love engulfs Odette. This happens through Prince Siegfried who sees Odette at night dancing beside the lake as a woman.
However, the story takes a twist and Odette and Siegfried cannot be united due to Odile’s vicious plans.
The one-hour dance ballet is packed with almost all the human emotions woven around it – passion, love, jealousy, and so on. The performance began with the classical soundtrack of Swan Lake which set the mood for the rest of the simple story.
Swan Lake was a ballet written by the Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in 1875-76. It revolves around the story of Odette, a Russian princess who has been transformed into a swan by an evil sorcerer.
‘Hansika’ is about two sisters who are at loggerheads over a handsome prince. Good woman versus the evil woman has a lot of psychological depth and complexity. The life story of Odette and her sister is the story of one virtuous woman becoming a victim of a jealous evil one.
Many dancers, dressed in white, could effectively convey the message, be it humans or animals, the emotions are the same. While the dancers danced in Odissi style, there were traces of ballet movements which did not become an aberration but only added to the aesthetic appeal.
Excellent choreography by Sharmila and costumes by Aloka D Souza and Vijaya Kumar were the highlights of this gripping ballet and music ensemble made it pleasing to the ears. The focus was more on the group formations on the stage rather than on specific movements.
Praveen D Rao has used various instruments like sitar, flute, violin etc. and the traditional mardala, the primary percussion instrument for Odissi.
G. Ulaganathan, Cultural Critic, Bengaluru
