Back at the Ahmanson, the transformatn of Tchaikovsky's ballet to a gay romance still electrifi wh heartfelt drama and spectacular dancg.
Contents:
- DANCE; 'SWAN LAKE': IS IT THEATER OR DANCE, GAY OR STRAIGHT?
- LET'S HAVE A REAL GAY ROMEO OM MATTHEW BOURNE
DANCE; 'SWAN LAKE': IS IT THEATER OR DANCE, GAY OR STRAIGHT?
Bourne created the work at a time when a law agast promotg homosexualy still existed England. It’s gone now, but you n see how the swans stroyg one of their own — and his male, human lover — speaks to the homophobic vlence that still exists almost Thursday, the lightg sign of Ple Constable ma Lez Brotherston’s faiar sets and stum look better than ever — though Dunn McLean’s bleary swan-projectns need to be rensired.
Today marks 50 years sce the Stonewall rts, which kicked off the first major monstratns for gay rights Ameri. Fifty years ago, on 28 June 1969, police raid the Stonewall Inn New York Cy's Greenwich Village, but bar patrons – gay men and drag queens – fought back, a spontaneo cint which is now marked as the begng of the gay rights movement the Uned Stat.
Gay relatnships and homoerotic subject matter have featured our shows sce the very begng 1987. At that time Sectn 28 was still live the UK, statg that a lol thory "shall not tentnally promote homosexualy or publish material wh the tentn of promotg homosexualy" and was still crimal to be gay on the Isle of Man. Given five stars by The Observer and scribed as ‘a sizzlg adventure' this dance productn, first seen May 2000 is rife wh homo-erotic them.
LET'S HAVE A REAL GAY ROMEO OM MATTHEW BOURNE
It also featur an out gay uple, two of the mechanics workg at Do's Der and Garage Mar and Vo. Homo-erotic threads n throughout Bourne's works even when the relatnships are ls explic. Arguably, Bourne's most recent productns gay relatnships are seen as a normalised ponent of reprentg ntemporary tim by dience members, a wele shift celebratg the muni.
Earlier reviews England, where the show origated, tend to dwell on what this ''Swan Lake'' was not, particularly among the olr dance one of the most famo (and some circl famo) English reviews, the peppery veteran reviewer Clement Crisp sound relieved to report that the relatnship between the prce and swan was not homosexual.
Was straight or gay? Bourne's ''Swan Lake'' has a powerful effect on many gay men.