Review: Michael Keegan-Dolan/Teaċ Daṁsa's Loch na hEala (Swan Lake) Ultimately Proves Childhood Joy
From the imagination of one of Ireland’s foremost dance and theatre-makers, Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist Michael Keegan-Dolan, comes a magical new adaptation of one of the most famous ballets in the world, Swan Lake. Loosely based on the traditional tale, this dark comedy version takes place in the present in a small town in Ireland. Performed by a company of 14 world-class performers including actor Mikel Murfi, this new production is interwoven with storytelling, song, and live music. The Dublin-based band Slow Moving Clouds has created a new score, combining Nordic and Irish traditional music with minimalist and experimental influences. With beautiful dancing and powerful imagery, Swan Lake is rooted in the Midlands of Ireland, where ancient mythology and the modern world collide.
"From the imagination of Michael Keegan-Dolan, one of Ireland's foremost dance and theatre makers, a new adaptation of one of the most famous of all story ballets, Swan Lake was forged. Working with the Dublin based band Slow Moving Clouds to create a new score that combines Nordic and Irish traditional music with minimalist and experimental influences, and his dedicated new performance troupe Teaċ Daa??sa (House of Dance) formed in 2016 as a means to forge deeper connections with the traditions, language, and music of Ireland, the resulting debut of Loch na hEala (Swan Lake) became a critical smash in Dublin and at Sadler's Wells, winner of best production and best costume design at the Irish Times Theatre Awards 2017.Now on a national tour of the United States, -Dolan's searing new vision for this beloved tale is rooted in a place where ancient Irish mythology and modern Ireland collide, creating a world of magical realism, compelling imagery and potent storytelling, infusing its viewers with a raw, majestic and empowering energy, rooted in the meeting of ancient folklore and the modern world, worlds in which mental illness can destroy lives.
No doubt we have all experienced a form of depression in our own lives, which often winds up as the vicious center of the darkness in life. As Keegan-Dolan shares, "Depression like most illness, can be a consequence of a continued state of imbalance, often connected with unresolved events from our lives. The accumulated sadness eventually immobilizes us and can make us sick, often requiring a fundamental change to move it. Change is an inevitable part of life, causing us to seek and find balance so that life can continue to endlessly unfold. So, don't be afraid of the dark. It is your friend."
While I found his program message motivational, encouraging us to move through the darkness to reach the light, I had no idea how that lesson was going to play out during Michael Keegan-Dolan/Teaċ Daa??sa Loch na hEala (Swan Lake) during the troupe's only West Coast appearance, presented by UCLA's Center for the Art of Performance (CAP UCLA) on Saturday, November 9 at the university's Royce Hall."— Shari Barrett, Nov. 12, 2019
This post is an excerpt. Read the full article on the Broadway World website.
Stay engaged. Use #UCLAarts to stay connected.
