Swan Lake

Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake is a contemporary ballet based on the Russian romantic work Swan Lake, from which it takes the music by Tchaikovsky and the broad outline of the plot. Bourne's rendering is best known for having the traditionally female parts of the swans danced by men. It was the longest-running ballet in London's West End and on Broadway. First staged at Sadler's Wells theatre in London in 1995, it has been performed in the UK, Los Angeles, Europe, Russia, Australia, South Korea, Japan, Israel, China, and Singapore. Synopsis This synopsis is derived from programme notes and the synopsis provided on the DVD. The plot of the ballet revolves around a young crown prince, his distant mother, and his desire for freedom, represented by a swan. Act I In the prologue, the Prince, as a child, is awakened by a nightmare of a swan. The Prince's mother comes in to comfort him, but becoming nervous by the situation's intimacy, leaves.