Ballet West’s ‘Swan Lake’ prepares to take the stage

Feb 4, 2024, 6:00 PM

Ballet West principal artist Emily Adams performs in "Swan Lake." (Beau Pearson)

(Beau Pearson)

KSLNewsRadio

SALT LAKE CITY — Ballet West’s “Swan Lake” promises enchantment, mesmerizing movement and a love story that transports audiences from the bleakness of winter.

“There’s something so powerful about seeing that the symmetry and the clean core work that it’s mesmerizing, and I think that’s why so many people love it because it’s almost hard to put your finger on what’s so mesmerizing about it. It’s a combination of the music and then also just the fact that you’re seeing 18 soloist ballerinas on the stage at the same time and the strength of that, visually, is very unique to ‘Swan Lake,'” said Emily Adams, who dances the lead role of Odette, the princess who gets transformed into a swan.

The production features the iconic melodies of Tchaikovsky performed live by the Ballet West Orchestra, along with a handcrafted set and gorgeous costumes. The combination of theatrical performances and production will transport audiences into a world of sorrowful princes, evil wizards and swan maidens. Cast in both roles of Odette and Odile, Adams must embody the stark differences of the two swans.

“You have to portray both characters and be believable as both, so Odette is, she’s strong but slightly more fragile. She’s very sad but hopeful. She moves in a way that’s very soft and controlled, almost like on the precipice of something the whole time and just kind of looking over and hoping you don’t fall in,” said Adams. “You transform into Odile, which is just the creation of the evil wizard Von Rothbart … you have to be cunning and dramatic but you also can’t be a caricature.”

Read the full story and more from Ashley Fredde on ksl.com.