Rating: 
Summary: five stars are not enough
Review: anyone who likes dance and ballet wil be moved by the extraordinary blend of technique and emotion miss makarova gives us in this wonderful video. dowell is a first class dance and partner. but the real stars of this item is first makarova, second the royal ballet girls, who dance an unforgettable second act. ivanov would be pleased.
Rating:
Summary: Very classic performance
Review: I compared Act III PPD in this performance and by other performers. Makarova just unbeatable in the execution of dancing. Her arms are expressive and the famous pirouettes are energetic and clean. In my opinion, Dowell just did a fine job compared with other Russian artist.
Rating:
Summary: Best Swan Lake Ever
Review: I have 8 Swan Lake videos. This is the one I like most!
Rating: 
Summary: Too much scenery
Review: I loved the dancing, and the story was a real tear-jerker. Unfortunately, there was too much scenery in Acts 1 and 3, which made it difficult to see the dancers very closely. (The screnery at the lake was perfect for the story.)
Rating:
Summary: Where are the feet?
Review: I nevered viewed Swan Lake until I purchased this DVD. I found the music and the ballet breathless. There were other DVDs of Swan Lake available which I watched as well. No matter what version of Swan Lake I viewed, I always come back to this one.
Rating:
Summary: This version is one to own!! Great Performance!!
Review: I nevered viewed Swan Lake until I purchased this DVD. I found the music and the ballet breathless. There were other DVDs of Swan Lake available which I watched as well. No matter what version of Swan Lake I viewed, I always come back to this one.
Rating: 
Summary: 'Follow up on previously submitted review
Review: I submitted a review of this DVD about two weeks ago and have not seen it. I thought it followed your guidelines. Could you please advise what happened. I do not have an address where to correspond with you ..... so I am using this venue. I devoted some time to composing it and have reviewed other Swan Lakes for you, so I'd like to hear from you if there are editorial issues......Thank you, Ignacio.
Rating: 
Summary: Overrated
Review: I've been meaning to review this tape for quite some time, because I cannot account for what my fellow reviewers have written about it. "Swan Lake" is my very favorite ballet, and my video dance collection includes 12 complete performances, 2 abridged versions, plus numerous excerpts. Over a period of time, I've found that I rarely watch this one, as it hasn't held my interest. This performance of the Royal Ballet was filmed live in 1980 at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden in London for an invited audience. Odette-Odile is performed by Natalia Markarova; Prince Siegfried is danced by Anthony Dowell. Choreography is by Frederick Ashton (after Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov). The tape is clearly filmed and has nice production values. The waltz in the first act is Ashton's own choreography. I don't care for it because the steps are too loosely related to the well-known social dance for my personal tastes. In a typical Kirov performance, the waltz is an opportunity to show just how graceful the dancers are, but in Ashton's version, it evolves into a spectacle of big jumps and intricate footwork that, unfortunately, doesn't fit the character of the music very well. The highlight of the first act is Anthony Dowell's variation, which is beautifully performed. The ballerina makes her appearance in the second act. Makarova certainly has a lovely quality to her adage, featuring nice leg extensions and graceful movements, however, there are other areas of her dance that are not nearly as polished. Makarova isn't an accomplished jumper; for instance, her sissonnes in Odette's solo near the end of the second act are the most lethargic I've ever seen on videotape. Furthermore, she's not a prodigious turner, and her supported pirouettes are often a bit rough. One of my favorite moments in "Swan Lake" is the supported adagio from the second act. But, I don't value Makarova's performance of it, as some might, because she tends to prefer slow tempos. The music just doesn't sound as good when played that way. Because I have a busy schedule, I often like to watch the supported adagio as an excerpt, instead of watching the whole ballet. More often than not, I find myself choosing to watch the supported adagio from the 1969 Kirov film of "Swan Lake," starring Yelena Yevteyeva. I prefer Yelena, because she's so excellent at portraying her emotions and because she's an all-around accomplished ballerina. For those of you who know Makarova's history, you know that she was a member of the Kirov in 1969, but those in charge selected a different ballerina for the lead role in the film production. Act three begins with a pas de quatre that was adapted from the rarely-used pas de six. It's more of a curiosity than anything else. Out of all of the national divertissements that come next, the Hungarian was probably the best, whereas the Spanish could have used more swooshy backbends and greater flair. The Neapolitan dance is one of Ashton's own creations. It's designed as a footwork extravaganza, but I think that it's on the circus-y side. The highlight of the third act is the pas de deux (pdd). Normally, it's a showcase for dazzling technical feats, but Ashton has reworked much of the choreography to hide Makarova's deficiencies as a turner and a jumper. You'll notice that the introduction of the pdd begins with a lot of lifts, whereas normally those would be jumps by the ballerina. The highlight of the pdd is the variation by Dowell. He's excellent. Makarova's variation has been reworked, and one change is that the sissonnes were removed. For an example of outstanding sissonnes, see Maya Plisetskaya in the 1957 Bolshoi "Swan Lake." You'll notice in both Odette's variation and the coda of the pdd that Makarova can only do single pique turns, whereas her contemporaries usually work some doubles in. Only a few chaine turns are performed, those being slow and overly deliberate looking. Her weakness as a turner makes the pdd lack bravura, and the pdd ends weakly with Makarova hopping backward in arabesque. Plisetskaya's Odile can dance circles around Markarova's. In fact, I like Plisetskaya's Odette better too, because Maya has a super-flexible back that allows her to hit unique positions, and she makes the role her own with her fluid swan arms. The corps de ballet work in the final act is nice, but it's certainly not up to Kirov standards. Although there's some interesting choreography to be found here, I cannot understand why Ashton took the leads off the stage for almost 2 minutes at the very climax of the ballet. In my video collection, this is one of my least favorite endings. The best dancer in the entire production is Anthony Dowell, and it's too bad that he gets so few opportunities to solo. Makarova has a beautiful quality to her adage, but her Odile is in the bottom quartile in comparison to her peers on video--if not rock bottom. So, let me leave you with a few alternate recommendations. Either of the two contemporary Kirov productions (starring Galina Mezentseva and Yulia Makhalina as Odette-Odile) are very solid from top to bottom. My favorite commercially-available "Swan Lake" is the Plisetskaya version mentioned earlier, and I've included it on my Ballet Favorites listmania list. Do yourself a favor and check out those other tapes before purchasing this one, as this performance is highly overrated.
Rating:
Summary: Overrated
Review: I've been meaning to review this tape for quite some time, because I cannot account for what my fellow reviewers have written about it. "Swan Lake" is my very favorite ballet, and my video dance collection includes 12 complete performances, 2 abridged versions, plus numerous excerpts. Over a period of time, I've found that I rarely watch this one, as it hasn't held my interest. This performance of the Royal Ballet was filmed live in 1980 at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden in London for an invited audience. Odette-Odile is performed by Natalia Markarova; Prince Siegfried is danced by Anthony Dowell. Choreography is by Frederick Ashton (after Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov). The tape is clearly filmed and has nice production values. The waltz in the first act is Ashton's own choreography. I don't care for it because the steps are too loosely related to the well-known social dance for my personal tastes. In a typical Kirov performance, the waltz is an opportunity to show just how graceful the dancers are, but in Ashton's version, it evolves into a spectacle of big jumps and intricate footwork that, unfortunately, doesn't fit the character of the music very well. The highlight of the first act is Anthony Dowell's variation, which is beautifully performed. The ballerina makes her appearance in the second act. Makarova certainly has a lovely quality to her adage, featuring nice leg extensions and graceful movements, however, there are other areas of her dance that are not nearly as polished. Makarova isn't an accomplished jumper; for instance, her sissonnes in Odette's solo near the end of the second act are the most lethargic I've ever seen on videotape. Furthermore, she's not a prodigious turner, and her supported pirouettes are often a bit rough. One of my favorite moments in "Swan Lake" is the supported adagio from the second act. But, I don't value Makarova's performance of it, as some might, because she tends to prefer slow tempos. The music just doesn't sound as good when played that way. Because I have a busy schedule, I often like to watch the supported adagio as an excerpt, instead of watching the whole ballet. More often than not, I find myself choosing to watch the supported adagio from the 1969 Kirov film of "Swan Lake," starring Yelena Yevteyeva. I prefer Yelena, because she's so excellent at portraying her emotions and because she's an all-around accomplished ballerina. For those of you who know Makarova's history, you know that she was a member of the Kirov in 1969, but those in charge selected a different ballerina for the lead role in the film production. Act three begins with a pas de quatre that was adapted from the rarely-used pas de six. It's more of a curiosity than anything else. Out of all of the national divertissements that come next, the Hungarian was probably the best, whereas the Spanish could have used more swooshy backbends and greater flair. The Neapolitan dance is one of Ashton's own creations. It's designed as a footwork extravaganza, but I think that it's on the circus-y side. The highlight of the third act is the pas de deux (pdd). Normally, it's a showcase for dazzling technical feats, but Ashton has reworked much of the choreography to hide Makarova's deficiencies as a turner and a jumper. You'll notice that the introduction of the pdd begins with a lot of lifts, whereas normally those would be jumps by the ballerina. The highlight of the pdd is the variation by Dowell. He's excellent. Makarova's variation has been reworked, and one change is that the sissonnes were removed. For an example of outstanding sissonnes, see Maya Plisetskaya in the 1957 Bolshoi "Swan Lake." You'll notice in both Odette's variation and the coda of the pdd that Makarova can only do single pique turns, whereas her contemporaries usually work some doubles in. Only a few chaine turns are performed, those being slow and overly deliberate looking. Her weakness as a turner makes the pdd lack bravura, and the pdd ends weakly with Makarova hopping backward in arabesque. Plisetskaya's Odile can dance circles around Markarova's. In fact, I like Plisetskaya's Odette better too, because Maya has a super-flexible back that allows her to hit unique positions, and she makes the role her own with her fluid swan arms. The corps de ballet work in the final act is nice, but it's certainly not up to Kirov standards. Although there's some interesting choreography to be found here, I cannot understand why Ashton took the leads off the stage for almost 2 minutes at the very climax of the ballet. In my video collection, this is one of my least favorite endings. The best dancer in the entire production is Anthony Dowell, and it's too bad that he gets so few opportunities to solo. Makarova has a beautiful quality to her adage, but her Odile is in the bottom quartile in comparison to her peers on video--if not rock bottom. So, let me leave you with a few alternate recommendations. Either of the two contemporary Kirov productions (starring Galina Mezentseva and Yulia Makhalina as Odette-Odile) are very solid from top to bottom. My favorite commercially-available "Swan Lake" is the Plisetskaya version mentioned earlier, and I've included it on my Ballet Favorites listmania list. Do yourself a favor and check out those other tapes before purchasing this one, as this performance is highly overrated.
Rating:
Summary: A bird or a princess?
Review: Is Odette a swan or a princess? I suppose that this has been a longstanding question for many balerinas. For my part I am inclined to think that she is first of all a princess! However Miss makarova portayed Odette as a BIRD throughout her career and won considerable acclaim for it. I must admit that no one since has been able to do this more convincingly. The first time I watched this video was 19 years ago. I was 17 years old and was mesmerised by her performance. Since than I have watched this video again along with other productions of the ballet and can not help thinking that this venerable ballerina uses way too many arm movements and that many of them are superfluous and uneccessary. I now think that this is bad taste if anything!
Miss Makarova is a great ballerina but she lacks elegance in her manner. This she covers up with her beautiful lines and delicate form. She is more suited for roles such as Don Quichotte and Romeo and Juliette where more dramatic expressivness is needed rather than regal restraint and otherworldly airiness.
Her portrail of Odile however is unparalled! She is bewitching.
The rest of the production is outdated and the renditions made by Ashton are not worth mentionning.
Inspite my criticism of miss Makarova's performance she is the only reason to buy this dvd IF, that is, you must have it!
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