Tchaikovsky’s ballet Swan Lake will be restaged at the HCM City Opera House on November 8 and 9. Photo courtesy of HBSO

HCM CITY — The HCM City Ballet Symphony Orchestra and Opera (HBSO) will add more shows of the classical ballet Swan Lake at the Opera House on November 8 and 9 to express appreciation for the overwhelmingly enthusiastic response and support from the audiences.

The ballet was composed in 1876 by Russian composer Tchaikovsky, based on Russian and German folk tales. It was first performed at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow in 1877. It became one of the most performed ballets ever.

Norwegian choreographer Johanne Jakhelln staged and choreographed the exclusive version of Swan Lake for HBSO. The ballet premiered in October, and its tickets were sold out immediately.

The four-act ballet features the love story of Prince Siegfried and Odette, a princess turned into a swan by an evil sorcerer’s curse. But their love faces obstacles caused by Odile, the sorcerer’s daughter.

Nguyễn Phúc Hải, head of the HBSO Ballet, said HBSO spent years preparing for Tchaikovsky’s ballet, which showed the troupe’s ability to conquer art masterpieces and its efforts to bring classic works into its annual programme.

Young dancer Đỗ Hoàng Khang Ninh plays Odette in Swan Lake. Photo courtesy of HBSO

The ballet features Đỗ Hoàng Khang Ninh, who will play Odette.

Ninh got a scholarship to study with the Norwegian National Opera & Ballet, and participated in cultural exchanges in Korea. She has performed in the ballets Giselle, Cinderella, The Nutcracker, and Ballet Kiều.

Japanese dancer Chika Tatsumi, a soloist of Arabesque Việt Nam, a neo-classical and contemporary dance company in HCM City, will portray Odile.

Tatsumi began studying ballet when she was three. She joined the Secondary Dance School affiliated with the Shenyang Conservatory of Music at the age of 13.

She graduated from the Codarts University for the Arts in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, in 2013. She has been working as a main dancer of the Lonneke van Leth Production in The Hague for three years, and in 2015, she joined Arabesque.

The ballet will also feature Lê Đức Anh, Sùng A Lùng, Phạm Thế Phương and dancers from the HBSO Ballet, the HCM City Dance School, and Sasa Ballet.

The shows will begin at 8pm at 7 Lam Sơn Square in Sài Gòn Ward. Tickets are available at the venue. — VNS

Japanese dancer Chika Tatsumi, a soloist of Arabesque Việt Nam, portrays Odile. Photo courtesy of HBSO