Review: MATTHEW BOURNE'S SWAN LAKE: THE NEXT GENERATION, Sadler's Wells

Even 30 years after he created it, Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake is still his defining production. Just why hasn’t he yet surpassed this masterpiece?

We first meet the Prince (James Lovell) as he mopes around his court. He’s not happy and his mother the Queen (Nicole Kabera) wants to see him married off presumably so she can dedicate more of her time to flirting with handsome army officers. After being thrown out of a Soho nightclub, the Prince stumbles across the charismatic Swan (Harrison Dowzell) and, after spending some time with him and his friends, falls deeply in love. The Swan makes his way to court, this time in human form. He rebuffs the Prince, entertains the ladies of the court and goes on to seduce the Queen. Before the curtain falls, there’s heartbreak and tragedy of more than one variety.

The return this week to where Swan Lake first debuted in 1995 is a worthy time to re-evaluate an epochal show that broke the mould. Its iconoclastic use of an all-male group of bare-chested dancers to portray the swans, modern setting and groundbreaking choreography generated a mixed reaction when it first came out. The public adored it at Sadler’s Wells and the following year, after a two-month tour around the UK, it opened in the West End for a record-breaking 120 performances at Piccadilly Theatre (now home to Moulin Rouge). There was critical success too and it went on to win the Olivier award for Best Dance Production. The homoerotic romance, though, was not universally acclaimed: next to a picture of the swans, one newspaper put the words “Bum me up, Scotty”.

Bourne isn’t the only one to radically update Tchaikovsky’s work - earlier this year at Sadler’s Wells, Zhang Quan’s Acrobatic Swan Lake infused spectacular circus into the bare bones of the storyline, creating a show which was more akin to something created by Cirque du Soleil than the Royal Ballet - but his theatrical and dramatic stylings seen here and in other creations for his New Adventures company are signature traits that later choreographers took note of and emulated. The fiery levels of bravery, creativity and cinematic vibrancy of his Swan Lake, though, have arguably yet to be emulated in anything that followed but there are embers seen in more recent outings like Edward Scissorhands and Sleeping Beauty.

Despite this production being subtitled “The Next Generation”, there are still some familiar faces in the cast. Both Lovell and Kabera played the same roles for this production in 2018 and they slot right back in with consummate ease and confidence. Lovell in particular really digs into the mental conflict and confusion suffered by the Prince - is he imagining the Swan or is he real? - while Kabera is simply majestic as the Queen detached from her parental duties but certainly committed to having a good time.

It is Dowzell, though, who owns the stage every time he appears. He last performed for New Adventures in their revival of The Car Man (Bourne’s take on Bizet’s Carmen) and here he launches himself across the stage at every opportunity. It’s no coincidence that, while Lez Brotherston’s set and costume design is simply magnificent, Etta Murfitt’s re-staging is a tad pedestrian before the Swan first bursts onto the scene.

There is still a question over whether the final moments are a twist too far. They certainly create a memorable talking point but they also throw a heavy doubt and something of a shadow over everything that has gone before. Losing a lover is one thing but losing your sanity? A step too far into the darkness, perhaps.

Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake: The Next Generation continues at Sadler’s Wells until 26 January 2025

Photo credits: Johan Persson