The Secret meanings of Swan Lake - a short documentary

This is my personal take on Swan Lake, exploring some of the hidden meanings within the ballet.

Links to the Swan Lake videos used in this mini documentary are:

Aerial view Act 2 Corps de Ballet pictures: Bolshoi Ballet

Chapel picture (part 6) by Alexandre Benois, original set designer for Swan Lake (see also 'The Ballet called Swan Lake' by Cyril Beaumont)

Final Part picture identification: White Swan, Margot Fonteyn and Black Swan, Alicia Alonso

Shot of the moon during part 2 is from the film 'An American Werewolf in London'

[juliecronshaw]

Also, if you find my work useful and would like to donate something to help the cause (of any amount at all) then you can PayPal us a donation to:

We really really appreciate it!

Lastly - here is the full list of videos available on our website. We worked really hard on them. Enjoy :)

Monday:

1 – Assemblé Cecchetti
2 – Commentary
3 – Adage; Coupé et fouetté
4 – Commentary
5 – Temps levé, chassé, coupé, fouetté, posé, assemblé, entrechat trois, en avant et en arrière
6 – Commentary
7 – Développé croisé avec relevé, glissade, entrechat six de côté
8 – Commentary
9 – Demi – contretemps, entrechat six de côté (en diagonale) followed by pas de bourrée entrechat six en tournant (autour de la salle)
10 – Commentary

Tuesday:

1 – Adage; Developpé fouetté Cecchetti
2 – Commentary
3 – Adage – Pas de chaconne Cecchetti
4 – Commentary
5 – Adage – Tour en dedans pirouette renversé développé à la seconde
6 – Commentary
7 – Pas de bourrée, dégagé, petits battements, dégagé, fouetté, jeté, chassé, pas de chat
8 – Commentary
9 – Relevé, petits battements, posé, petits battements, pas de bourrée, pas de bourrée avec allongée
10 – Commentary
11 – Jeté battement, rond de jambe sauté, etc.
12 – Commentary
13 – Pas de bourrée, posé, fouetté to arabesque, tombé, pas de chat
14 – Commentary
15 – Douze ballonnés, piqués, tombés, pas de bourrée
16 – Commentary
17 – Jeté, petits battements, deux ballonnés en avant
18 – Commentary
19 – Jeté, petits battements, deux ballonnés en arrière
20 – Commentary

Wednesday:

1 – Adage; Pas de la Mascotte
2 – Commentary
3 – Jeté rond de jambe sauté, deux fois, jeté, trois ronds de jambe sautés
4 – Commentary
5 – Salvo – Temps levé développé, temps levé fouetté, jeté, gargouillade volée, deux jetés, etc.
6 – Commentary
7 – Muriel – Temps levé développé, temps levé fouetté, jeté, gargouillade volée, deux jetés, etc.
8 – Commentary
9 – Deux (slow) gargouillades en – dehors, deux (quick) gargouillades en – dehors, etc.
10 – Commentary
11 – Ronds de jambe relevé retombé, etc.
12 – Commentary
13 – Demi – contretemps, rond de jambe relevé en dedans, jeté devant allongé à l’arabesque, etc.
14 – Commentary
15 – Coupé dessus en tournant, septs ronds de jambe en tournant en-dehors, etc.
16 – Commentary
17 – Full contretemps, assemblé dessus, ronds de jambe sauté, réleve en attitude, etc.
18 – Commentary
19 – Double rond de jambe sauté en dehors, posé en avant, etc.
20 – Commentary

Thursday:

1 – Adage -Pas de l’Alliance
2 – Commentary
3 – Glissade derrière, jeté to arabesque croisée, dégagé en tournant, entrechat six
4 – Commentary
5 – Jeté, relevé, posé, coupé, cinq fois (with ending)
6 – Commentary 6B – (Additional observation)
7 – Glissade derrière, jeté à l’arabesque croisée, etc.
8 – Commentary
9 – Pas de bourrée, jeté en attitude, quatre fois etc.
10 – Commentary
11 – Pas de bourrée couru grand jeté en tournant, pas de bourrée couru, fouetté sauté en tournant dans 1ère arabesque
12 – Commentary

Friday:

1 – Adage; Glissade Cecchetti
2 – Commentary
3 – Adage; Glissade de Mami
4 – Commentary
5 – Glissade cabriole devant, glissade cabriole derrière, etc.
6 – Commentary
7 – Brisé volé en avant, brisé volé en arrière, grand pas de basque, entrechat trois
8 – Commentary
9 – Pas de basque battu, etc.
10 – Commentary
11 – Posé, cabriole devant, trois fois, pas de bourrée dessus à la quatrième arabesque allongée
12 – Commentary
13 – Entrechat quatre, entrechat quatre volé, deux fois, trois entrechats quatres, entrechat six
14 – Commentary
15 – Brisé dessus, cabriole devant fermée, entrechat quatre, entrechat trois, brisé volé en avant, cabriole fouetté, jeté battu, cabriole derrière fermée
16 – Commentary
17 – Pointework Observations – (with Emma Moran)
18 – Pointework Observations (with Madeline Squire as a Student)

Saturday:

1 – Adage – Six relevés
2 – Commentary
3 – Adage -Deux grands ronds de jambe en l’air avec arabesque
4 – Commentary
5 – Fouetté sauté à six temps en arrière
6 – Commentary
7 – Coupé sauté, ballonné, jeté en tournant, posé, jeté, posé, jeté
8 – Commentary
9 – Temps levé, chassé en arrière deux fois, temps levé posé deux fois, jeté élancé à l’attitude, pas de bourrée renversé, assemblé coupé derrière, entrechat six
10 – Commentary
11 – Temps levé, chassé croisé, temps levé en arabesque croisée, coupé dessus, ballonné, grand jeté en tournant, posé
12 – Commentary
13 – Additional steps for men – Deux temps levés, chassés en arrière, assemblé devant, double tour en l’air
14 – Commentary
15 – Commentary only – Pas de l’ange (additional steps for men)
En Diagonale:
1 – Pas de bourrée en dedans, jeté, fouetté en tournant en dedans, développé à l’arabesque
2 – Commentary
3 – Coupé fouetté, coupé fouetté en tournant, coupé, pas de basque, tour en attitude renversé
4 – Commentary
5 – Pas de bourrée en tournant, coupé trois temps levés en 4ème arabesque en tournant, etc.
6 – Commentary
7 – Temps levé chassé, deux fois, deux tours en dehors (with arm movement and renversé)
8 – Commentary
9 – Additional steps for men – Double tour en l’air, chassé en arabesque, glissade, cabriole etc.
10 – Commentary

Barre:

1 – Pliés
2 – Commentary
3 – Pliés – Additional Summary
4 – Battements tendus, relevés and dégagés
5 – Commentary
6 – Ronds de jambe à terre avec ronds de jambe jetés
7 – Ronds de jambe à terre – Commentary – Muriel
8 – Holding the arms in à la seconde – Commentary
9 – Battements frappés
10 – Commentary – Salvo
11 – Commentary- Muriel
12 – Petits battements
13 – Petits battements – Commentary – Muriel
14 – Ronds de jambe en l’air
15 – Ronds de jambe en l’air – Commentary- Muriel
16 – Adage movements – Commentary
17 – Grands battements & battements balancés
18 – Commentary – Salvo
19 – Commentary – Muriel
20 – Value of the Cecchetti Barre
21 – Barre Summary

Centre Practice & Pirouettes:

1 – First set of Ports de bras – Salvo
2 – Second set of Ports de bras – Muriel
3 – Commentary
4 – First set of Ports de bras & grands battements – Muriel
5 – Commentary
6 – Battements tendus & dégagés
7 – Commentary
8 – Ronds de jambe à terre
9 – Commentary
10 – Battements frappés & petits battements (with 2nd ending)
11 – Commentary
12 – Grande préparation pour pirouette en dedans (in 1st arabesque and on the knee) – Muriel
13 – Commentary
14 – Grande préparation pour pirouettes en dedans – Salvo
15 – Commentary
16 – Pirouettes en dehors sur le cou-de-pied
17 – Commentary
18 – Deux tours en-dehors, rond de jambe à l’attitude croisée, etc.
19 – Commentary
20 – Série de coupé, rond de jambe, pas de bourrée renversée
21 – Commentary

Interviews with Katharine Kanter:

1 – Cecchetti – Why take on the challenge?
2 – Muriel Valtat – interview
3 – Salvatore Nicolosi – interview
4 – Muriel Valtat & Julie Cronshaw – interview
5 – George Massey – interview
6 – Morta Grigaliūnaitė – interview
7 – Florence and the Hamlyn School
8 – Nicoletta Santoro – interview
9 – Alessandra Alberti – interview
10 – Elisa Corsini – interview

[deborahjweaver]

Yes, I agree. Swan Lake is really about the Prince, his hero's quest. And the divine geometry in Act II is no accident. Such a beautiful documentary, made with such love. Thank you.

[dougjaeger]

I’ve always looked at the swan corps with the straight lines, in diagonal and vee shapes as migrating birds in flight

[sunnygummybear]

I am so grateful to have stumbled upon this video, Swan Lake has been my favorite ballet since I was a child and in my own journey into adulthood I have become only more fascinated with it.

I have been searching for deeper symbolism and have yet to find any video that dives into this beautiful story until now!

Thank you so very much for this, I look forward to watching more of your content

[flightydancer]

What amazing and beautiful interpretation of Swan Lake. You are a very spiritual, sensitive and wise person.

[CC-kgzf]

This was absolutely excellent!! I wish there were videos done my Ms Cronshaw on all the major ballets! Thank you so much for such a well done video and analysis.

[prettyontheinsde]

This is obviously very well researched, and very interesting. I never really looked into the symbolism of ballet, even though I would like to, but this was a great starting point, and I just love it! This has definitely filmed my love for ballet. Thank you :))

[TeddyPalf]

I loved this thank you. I would love to see you dissect more ballets like this.

[derekr]

I really enjoyed your documentary, especially act 4 - I interpret the 'infinity' created by the lines of the dancers as also a kind of 'inevitability' - as if this tragedy will play out again and again.

[squalter.kaufmann]

Already slightly obsessed with Swan Lake, so thanks! ⭐️🌝

[veracruz]

Very glad to see you chose some of Angel Corella’s footage, the best Siegfried EVER !!!.... 👏🏼👏🏼
In your analysis, you seem to agree with me that Swan Lake is really about the Prince !!
In spite of the Odette/Odile duality and the 32 fouettés, the story is really about Siegfried’s quests....
💕💕💕🇧🇷

[herrbrucvald]

There seems to be a more pointed difference between Act 1 and 3. Act 1 is the joyous, ordered, normal world of society and nature,
while Act 3 is brilliant yet at night, enclosed, political, full of the high-stake menace and shadows that always threaten our lives.

[bishalyadav]

Loved the explanation with the Vedic words.

[handeakgun]

Thank you for sharing your wisdom I loved it!! As a kid my ballet teacher and mother took me to swan lake many times and I always hated it... Just four years ago I started to appreciate it and this video helped a lot!

[Kyrillzak]

Thank you!
Your narrative is beautiful. I am going to show this video to my little niece - we are going to see Swan Lake in Kharkov shortly.

[sangeetaatwal]

Thank you for all this illuminating information 😊

[felicity]

Thank you for the video, this was very interesting! I've also read The ballet called Swan Lake, but I think it's not so satisfying. I would rather recommend try to read for the history and any sources of Swan Lake Wiley's book on Tchaikovsky's ballets (via Internetarchive) and/or "Bolshoi Confidential"
The interesting thing is that Swan Lake is a story shaped probably about more years and has a lot of influences. It is so different from any other ballets around this time, not only with the ambigous ending in a time, when a happy ending was the ballet fashion (I think we may only understand the Swan Lake ending happenings with the help of the music). And the whole first act without any appearance of the primaballerina! I think this is all a proof that Tchaikovsky had big influence on the story, and probably wrote it. I can't imagine otherwise, especially with all this psychological meanings...(in 1876, he was also urged to marry at last, and he was also in kind of a quest).
By the way, I'm also posting videos on the origins of Swan Lake, so perhaps could be also inspirational for your analyzis.
Somehow, I think it happened like this: Taking the "Stolen Veill" by Musäus (and it's opera adaption Le Lac des fees); names from different European Medieval-romantic traditions; adding some ballet traditions (La Sylphide; La Peri; Giselle) and opera influences (Lohengrin, Carmen), but basically it's true, it's about things can't be restored, and also the hero's quest.

[clarisafalconvalerdi]

Excellent explanation, very useful for all of us who are dedicated to ballet (students, dancers, teachers, etc.). Greetings from Mexico.

[cathrinekatsigianni]

Wow! I have never known about these meanings!! Thanks so much!!!!

[simonavis]

So glad I stumbled on this. These interpretations are enlightening ! 🙏🏻