Nationalism at the ballet? On mounting a very Canadian Swan Lake
The National Ballet of Canada’s restaging of the Russian classic brought audiences to their feet
Most ballet companies hope for their shows to end with a standing ovation. The National Ballet of Canada's recent run of Swan Lake pulled off something more unusual: every show began with one, too.
That's because, for each performance, the ballet classic didn't start with Tchaikovsky's iconic score. Rather, after the house lights dimmed, audiences were brought to their feet every afternoon and evening by the National Ballet Orchestra's rendition of O Canada.
For musical director and principal conductor David Briskin, exceptional circumstances called for an exception to ballet's usual sequence of events.
"The decision to play O Canada was a way for the National Ballet of Canada to show solidarity with Canadians across the country who are facing challenges in these uncertain times, and to show our Canadian pride."
Moments like these reflect the anxiety many Canadians currently feel, as news that threatens people's livelihoods, values and the nation's sovereignty has become an almost everyday occurrence. But, according to Briskin, the national anthem gave audiences a moment to feel a collective sense of support instead.
"The result was beyond anyone's expectations. We have been so moved by the emotional response from our audiences — literally from tears to cheers. It seems to be providing a moment of clarity, unity and a little bit of catharsis for people."
Supporting both Canadian artists and audiences has always been the mandate of Toronto's globally recognized ballet company. Artistic director Hope Muir says that "since its inception in 1951, the National Ballet of Canada has proudly represented this country at home and on the world stage."
And at such a consequential moment, there is perhaps no production better suited to represent Canada than the company's own rendition of Swan Lake.
Recreating a classic
Originally premiering in 1877 at Moscow's Bolshoi Theatre, former artistic director Karen Kain restaged this timeless tale of trapped swans and unrequited love for the National Ballet in 2022. Kain, herself among the most prolific Canadian ballerinas of the 20th century, intended for this update to be her parting gift to the company she helmed for almost two decades.
Many aspects of her revamp have since garnered acclaim, including its lush, imaginative production design helmed by Andrew Lloyd Webber collaborator Gabriela Týlešová.
Yet Kain took many other considerations to ensure that this distinctly Russian ballet was both innovative and endearing to contemporary Canadian audiences.
Usually, the details behind a ballet company's creation of a new work would not be public knowledge. But over the entirety of her directorial process, Kain allowed filmmaker Chelsea McMullan unparalleled access to rehearsals, meetings and the everyday lives of the people working together to realize her vision for Swan Lake.
The resulting four-part miniseries, CBC Gem's Swan Song, showed that Kain often made directorial decisions in response to ballet's recent reckonings with racial and gender inclusion. Many in the dance world are still calling for changes to some of ballet's long-standing issues, including the lack of opportunity Black and brown dancers often face. And while acknowledging that as someone whose own professional career started in the 1960s, these concerns still presented a learning curve to her, Kain was nevertheless invested in making her Canadian Swan Lake better reflect the diversity of both the company — and the country.
One of Kain's most notable responses was the decision to have Swan Lake's famous corps de ballet (a ballet company's ensemble members) dance on stage with bare legs. Ballet dancers typically wear full-length tights on stage; however, these rarely reflect the skin tone of dancers with darker complexions.
While the audience was never far from mind in these decisions, foregoing tights in the Swans' costuming was positively received by National Ballet dancers like Erica Lall. "I love dancing bare legged in Swan Lake; I think it's beautiful" says Lall, a corps de ballet member with the company since 2024. "The Swans are often portrayed as delicate creatures, but in reality, they're powerful and can even be aggressive. Showing the muscularity of our legs really helps convey that strength to the audience."
The decision to show the dancer's musculature compliments Kain's desire to characterize the Swans with more nuance. Many scenes in Swan Song show Kain working with former choreographic associate Robert Binet to "humanize" the dancers not simply as Swans, but as women who cope with, and ultimately fight back against, their imprisonment by the ballet's sorcerer antagonist, Von Rothbart.
This intention ultimately leads to ensemble choreography that breaks unison at subtle and unexpected moments, and that swells with powerful, collective force in others.
What do we stand for?
After offering audiences everything on the scale between soft, delicate moments and grand, physical spectacles, the opening night of the National Ballet of Canada's Swan Lake ended much as it started: with a standing ovation.
Reflecting upon what drives an audience to participate in these two separate showings of public support, one can't help but consider that the reasons may be quite similar.
Indeed, the compelling aspects of Swan Lake's staging, choreography and performance emerge from the company's efforts to represent and empower, however subtle. These are efforts that — much like Canada's own status as a nation — have come under question in recent months.
So when audiences give productions like Swan Lake a standing ovation, it may just as well be to celebrate the fact that art of this nature — which carries on a vaunted tradition by helping it evolve — continues to have a place on Canada's public stages.
And whether that celebration is in response to O Canada, or a decidedly Canadian rendition of a Russian ballet, one thing is clear: they both have support.
The National Ballet of Canada's Swan Lake ran March 8-22 at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts in Toronto.
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