The language barrier dissolved Saturday evening between the Russian-speaking Bolshoi Ballet and its English-speaking audience in Memorial Hall.
The company moved to Tchaikovsky's music played by the N.C. Symphony under the baton of Bolshoi orchestral conductor Pavel Sorokin" manifesting expressions that words could not.
""There should be a list of human wonders of the world" and this would be at the top of the list" Chapel Hill resident Mary Phillips said. It was marvelous.""
Intricate costuming" lighting and scenery completed the show's mystical effect transporting the audience back to the late 19th century" when the Bolshoi debuted ""Swan Lake.""
It was evident that the work had been created for this company. Each dancer lived their roles as though the music ran through their veins.
One of the most memorable moments was the scene of 24 swan maidens on the lake"" each of them channelling her movements precisely into the larger form.
""It's almost as if it is one heartbeat" one animal said Lee Anne McClymont of Hillsborough. They just smile and they reach" and they're not mechanical.""
Gov. Bev Perdue" who joined the audience for Saturday's performance" expressed her enthusiasm for the Bolshoi's performance.
""Who would have thought that we in North Carolina would have the Bolshoi?"" she said.
""It's just breathtaking for a state. People from all over the country and all over the world are here tonight.""
Jess Isaiah Levin" a violinist for the N.C. Symphony since 1974" said this was the first time the symphony had ever done the complete ballet performance of ""Swan Lake.""
""It's been a wonderful experience" he said. It's frustrating of course not to be able to see any of it. I love the ballet and I wish I could be out there" especially with a magnificent company like the Bolshoi. But it's a lot of fun.""
Hannah Davis"13 an aspiring dancer from Chapel Hill said one of her favorite parts was watching Ekaterina Shipulina" the lead ballerina.
""As soon as she comes onstage" your eyes go straight to her" she said. It's like you don't see anything else.""
Though the show is called ""Swan Lake" former New York Times dance critic Anna Kisselgoff warned against misinterpretations at a lecture at the Ackland Art Museum on Friday.
Please please don't think that Siegfried the hapless prince falls in love with a bird. I can't imagine that she said to an uproar of laughter.
As a woman" she goes into swanlike arabesques. But she is a woman.""
It was difficult" however to think of Shipulina as anything but a swan. Her elegance and fluidity mirrored that of the graceful bird as she floated and fluttered across the stage in the most natural way.
In ballet especially with companies as talented and precise as the Bolshoi it is easy to get caught up in the footwork of the dancers. But the characters' expression is often in their eyes as much as it is in their feet.
For instance Shipulina transforms herself from the beautiful swan princess Odette into the dark maiden Odile by narrowing her eyes and curling the corners of her lips.
Emil Kang UNC's executive director for the arts" credited the week's success with the cooperation of his staff and the University.
""If any one thing doesn't work" it just falls apart he said. It's very much analogous to the dancers" the orchestra and the conductor.""
Contact the Arts Editor at arts.dth@gmail.com.
'Swan Lake' exhibits intricacies of ballet
Two lords leap across the stage in a whirling dance to open the first act of ?Swan Lake.? Their elaborate costumes added to the ballet?s dramatic effect.
