This year marks the 30th Anniversary of Amsterdam Dance Event, an annual 5-day conference in October that brings over 500,000 visitors to the city in celebration of electronic music. ADE’s inclusion of the city’s arts and cultural sector over the years has broadened its appeal to an even wider audience. Dutch National Ballet helped open this special edition with a remixed version of Swan Lake presented at Gashouder. The dance spectacle was a strong opening for ADE, bringing together different forms of movement expression with a unified sense of purpose and celebration.
Swan Lake Remixed continues the ongoing relationship between The Dutch National Ballet and ISH Collective, a dance company that fuses hip hop and urban sports with a variety of traditional and social forms of dance. The addition of Amsterdam Dance Event in the mix, created an interesting new layer, starting with the location itself.
Gashouder has been under renovations for almost two years and it was quite an experience to step into a space that has hosted so many iconic techno parties. To have the audience stand around the stage, drinks in hand and children on shoulders, brought a more interactive engagement than one would normally see at a theatre. While I did appreciate the breaking of theatre norms I was less enthused when my feet started to ache and I developed a kink in my neck from staring up at the stage. In fairness it should be noted that by no fault of their own, Dutch people are tall, so I spent a lot of my time on tip-toe, gazing above various shoulders or into someone’s iPhone for a peak at a video.
The dancing was certainly impressive. I had goosebumps when I heard the audible gasp followed by applause when the corps de ballet women bounded onto the stage in their white swan tutus. They must have felt like headliners at a stadium concert. Dutch National Ballet is in the midst of their Swan Lake season so I was equally impressed to see how much the company was committed to bringing the Swan Lake experience to this potentially new audience. The corps de ballet women danced their Act 2 choreography to perfection and extra kudos to the four women who performed the well known Four Little Swans.
Tchaikovsky’s composition has permeated so much of the cultural zeitgeist that I don't think people realise how much Swan Lake music they actually know. Principal dancers Salome Leverashvili as Odette and Timothy van Poucke in the role of the Prince performed an absolutely sublime pas de deux. To be in the audience and witness all this artistry in close detail, not only the physicality but the costuming as well, was truly remarkable. Giorgi Potskhishvili as DJ/Rothbart also brought theatrical flair and ballet bravado that weaved Amsterdam Dance Event into the theme and provided a loose thread connecting the various dance scenes.
A remix is often defined as a new version of an original piece of music where things are rearranged, edited or reconfigured. The sixty minute piece that highlighted the dancers from ISH Collective and special guest artists was both dynamic and also disjointed. Key moments of the classical ballet were interjected with sections dedicated to forms of dance. It’s a tricky endeavour to mediate different styles of dance into one piece and though I applaud the effort, as a concept it didn’t quite coalesce. From my vantage point on the side, I do admit I that probably missed a lot of the overall presentation, seeing as the piece was more designed for front viewing. Those who acquired standing room on the higher platform in front of the stage were also privy to the technical and creative aspects of the lighting which I couldn’t fully appreciate.
Many street dances often derive from battle style structures that favour dazzling, in-your-face tricks rather than more subtle movement choices. Potskhishvili stayed true to his bravado and swagger and Leverashvili breezed through her 32 fouettés with gusto. Van Poucke kept a more princely composure but showed the audience his strength by lifting Leverashvili easily above his head for the final pose. Javier Becerra Cubero is definitely a new member of Dutch National to keep an eye on. His Black Swan interpretation served just the right amount of seduction and sass mixed flawlessly with ballet technique.
I was less convinced of Swan Lake Remixed as a dance piece but where it hit the mark was in captivating a potentially new dance audience with a unified front of solidarity, respect and appreciation for dance in all its diversity.
