Tchaikovsky - Swan Lake / Maya Plisetskaya, Nicolai Fadeyechev, Bolshoi Ballet

Rating:
Summary: I love Maya,but...
Review: I adroe Maya's artistry but this recording is not doing her justice.Very poor cameramanship ! They rather shot faces of audience than showing her dnacing in many occasions. ( It was probably a Soviet propanganda at that time to show how beautifula nd well dressed the audiences were ! ).Maya's tecnique was solid but not too expressive in this performance.The dying swan bonus is a jewel.I also recommend this only for historic reasons. Otherwise,the Makarova and Ananiashivili recordings are my favorites.

Rating:
Summary: A poor ballet film
Review: Plisetskaya deserves 5 stars but this is a very poor ballet film
The first act is heavily cut and there are too many shots of the
audience even in such important scenes as the second act and black swan pas de deux and also many shots from the stage showing
the back of the dancers and the theater. The audio and the video are poor.

Rating:
Summary: Charismatic Maya P., brutally cut Swan Lake
Review: This 1957 film records the legendary Maya Plisetskaya's Swan Lake at the Bolshoi Theater.
Like a lot of historical ballet films, I wouldnt recommend this as anyone's first or only Swan Lake. It has a lot of problems. The first and most problematic issue is how cut it is. Even though the dvd running time says 80 minutes, there's only about 70 minutes of dancing, as the rest is backstage/background fluff. A full-length Swan Lake usually runs about 2 hours, to give you an idea of how cut this film is. The cuts are everywhere, in every act, no music is spared. It's jarring not just for the ears but for the eyes. I can't even say whether the Bolshoi corps is good or bad in this film -- the film cuts the extended sequences that allow a viewer to judge a corps' cohesiveness, poise, and grace. The second distraction is how the film is directed. First of all, the photography is old, out of focus, jumpy, and just plain bad. The poor picture quality is certainly a turn off. Besides the grainy photography and unimpressive sets, the directors decided to be "creative" and cut away from dancing intermittently to show a rapt audience member and whatnot. This is fine during the "intermission" segments (in which we see Maya P. lacing up her shoes, and some stagehands lowering scenery drops). But it is NOT ok in the middle of, say, the White Swan Adagio! The worst insult was interrupting Odette's ENTRANCE with a shot of the audience.
The choreography also differs from a lot of Western Swan Lakes. In the first act there's a lot of dancing for a jester, who in this production (V. Khomyakov) happens to be a lightning fast turner. The Soviet productions also use the "happy" ending -- meaning, no leaping into the lake and no Swan Boat here. Just a dead Rothbart and a rather tacked-on happily ever after finish.
How is Maya Plisetskaya? She surely has personality to spare -- her red hair and piercing eyes seem to drip evil as Odile, particularly. She even cackles demonically. Her extremely fluid arms and back are typical for Russian ballerinas, and certainly are a plus in this bird/human role. Her arms were famous for their bonelessnes, and this can best be seen in the bonus of "A Dying Swan" and at the end of the White Act as Odette.
As a dancer, she does some things better than others. She's a lightning fast turner and spinner, and her leaps are huge. I've never seen such spectacular grande jetes. As Odile perhaps to show off her turning skills, she substitutes the typical 32 fouettes with fast circular pique turns and pirouettes. Her Odette is certainly charismatic, but not quite as impressive. For one thing, she's not one of those ballerinas that can look exquisite just balancing on pointe. Her persona is tough, slightly scary. As a result, her Odette lacks the porcelain delicacy and grace some ballerinas can bring to the role. Maya's figure is also unusual for a classical ballerina, and it deprives her of the kind of long, pure lines that Odette needs. She is squarer than most ballerinas, and although she's very thin her legs are shorter and thicker, so her bent leg arabesques and extensions (so much a part of Odette's dancing in Act 2) arent as aesthetically pleasing.
The best video Odette I've seen is still Natalia Makarova. Still, Maya P. is always a personality. I have a feeling she might have been one of those ballerinas you went to SEE rather than observe. There's bonus footage of her in The Dying Swan, where her fluid arms and back are again used to great effect. This was one of Maya's trademark roles and watching her flutter her arms bonelessly is amazing.
Nicolai Fadeyechev is neither handsome nor showy. He's more of a classical partner who lets the ballerina shine. Again, his figure is squarer and a bit dumpier than the super-toned ballet dancers we are accustomed to seeing today.
This is a live performance, and it is nice to see the obvious adoration of the Bolshoi audience for their prima ballerina. One particularly charming moment is when Siegfried rips off Rothbart's cape, the audience erupts in happy cheers, the way audiences do when "bad guys" are finally defeated. That small moment goes a long way in refuting the "Soviet Robots" propaganda of much of the Cold War.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent dancing by Maya
Review: This is a historic ballet film from the fifties. Notably the sound and video is not first rate. It is not recorded as a live performance per se. There are cuts here and there to the performance.
In spite of the sound and video quality, I thoroughly enjoy the dancing of Maya Plisetskaya. I am not a ballet expert, but I also own the Kirov (with Galina Mezentseva) and the Nureyev versions. In my opinion, among the three, Maya is the best Odette/Odile, followed by Galina. Her whole body can dance - her legs, arms and face. The Russian dancers seem to have more facial expressions which make them look more "into" the role, enhancing the effectiveness of their performance.
If you want a complete Swan Lake, this may not be the DVD for you. This DVD is recommended for its historic value.
For more info, please see reviews of the same film in VHS format.