Swan Lake is an icon of the ballet world, for good reason – and now this hauntingly beautiful ballet is back in Manchester for one weekend only.
Set to Tchaikovsky’s equally iconic score, Swan Lake tells the love story of Prince Siegfried and Swan Queen Odette, with plenty of magic and sorcery along the way.
There’s a lot of depth and intrigue to this tale, even if it a good half of it is essentially a load of people peacocking around a ballroom trying to prove they’re the most compatible for one another.
Throughout the two hour performance by the Mergaliyev Classical Ballet you’ll be witness to deception, enchantment, love, and plenty more, as evil sorcerer Von Rothbart meddles in Siegfied and Odette’s love and tricks him into falling in love with his daughter, Odile, instead.
The mirroring roles of Odette and Odile are both played by Nilay Tahiroglu, who is possibly the most captivating dancer to have ever graced the stage at the Opera House.
ADVERTISEMENT
It’s remarkable how she can make the human body so closely resemble a swan – the way the shape of hands can mimic a swan’s long neck, or the avian way her arms rotate in their sockets and gracefully unfurl like wings, or how she literally looks like she’s on water when she glides across the stage balanced en pointe.
When Tahiroglu transforms into Odile she’s still the same captivating dancer but now she’s bolder, braver. There’s a sharpness to her grace that wasn’t there before.
ADVERTISEMENT
While Odette’s eyes are almost always cast downwards and soft, Odile stares straight at the audience with a glittering secret in her eyes.
She’s the most beautiful, other-worldly dancer I’ve ever seen.
Cristo Civancos Prunes is excellent as Prince Siegfried, a man so classically handsome and sure-footed you could put him on the cover of a romantic novel at the airport and it’d sell a million copies.
ADVERTISEMENT
And Marek Bobosik shines as the cunning Von Rothbert too, even if his character is let down by an underwhelming costume that’s more ‘onesie at a Halloween party’ than ‘lead villain in a world-class ballet’.
The Dance of the Cygnets fell flat on opening night of Swan Lake in ManchesterVon Ruthbert’s costume
It’s not a perfect performance – during Dance of the Cygnets, possibly the world’s most iconic dance sequence, the four cygnets stumble and lose time. Our glittering principal also loses her footing once, prompting a sharp intake of breath from the audience, but regains it quickly.
And the first act, before we even meet Odette and are instead watching the wealthy types parade in front of one another in a ballroom, drags on – in fact, there are a lot of empty seats after the first of two intermissions, with many calling it a night early.
Compared to the English National Ballet, which brought Swan Lake to Manchester in 2022, this production could do with a little more polish and pizzazz.
But it’s still a truly magical sight to behold – even if you just come for Odette.
ADVERTISEMENT
Get your tickets for Swan Lake at the Opera House Manchester HERE.
Audience members ejected from Dolly Parton musical in Manchester due to homophobic heckling
Daisy Jackson
The Manchester run of Here You Come Again, a new Dolly Parton musical comedy, has been repeatedly disrupted by vile homophobic heckling from the audience, its star has revealed.
Actor and West End star Steven Webb shared a video addressing the issue on TikTok, saying that audience members had to be ejected from the Manchester Opera House.
The star of the lively new musical, which tells the story of a diehard Dolly Parton fan and is packed with the country star’s biggest hits, said the cast had faced an ‘insane’ amount of homophobia.
Steven said they once had to do a full show stop in Manchester and leave the stage after one audience member was ‘disgusted that there was a gay character on stage’ and began shouting mid-show, causing ‘a ruckus’ in the audience.
He said: “It’s a Dolly Parton musical, it’s gonna be a little bit gay, obviously.”
Steven also said: “Travelling the country and seeing how many people literally cannot bear to see a gay person depicted on stage, it’s wild. I feel very sorry for them.”
The Manchester Opera House stressed that it has a ‘zero tolerance’ policy to ‘bullying, harassment, or any form of abusive behaviour towards our cast, crew, or staff’.
The theatre, and its sister venue the Palace Theatre, said: “Our theatre team is committed to creating a safe, inclusive, and welcoming environment for everyone – both on and off the stage.
“Whilst these incidents are rare, we have a zero-tolerance policy to bullying, harassment, or any form of abusive behaviour towards our cast, crew, or staff. Anyone engaging in such conduct will be removed from the venue immediately.
Actor Steven Webb stars in Here You Come Again, a Dolly Parton musical, in Manchester. Credit: TikTok, @thatsteviewebb
“Thank you to all our theatre goers who continue to act with respect and kindness towards others.”
Steven said in his video: “The amount of audience members we have had to eject from our show due to homophobia is… insane. It is insane.
“Just this week in Manchester alone, last night we had to eject someone who was shouting out slurs, and on Wednesday we had to stop the whole show.
“We had to do an entire show stop and leave the stage, because a woman was so disgusted that there was a gay character on stage, and she was shouting out and then all the audience started shouting at her and then there was a sort of massive ruckus. So she eventually was ejected and we could start again, but we were stopped for 15 or 20 minutes.
“It’s crazy. It’s happening nearly every single week and it blows my mind. This is a Dolly Parton musical, first of all.
“It’s a Dolly Parton musical, it’s gonna be a little bit gay, obviously.
“It’s really opened my eyes, because we’re in such a bubble in this industry. But travelling the country and seeing how many people literally cannot bear to see a gay person depicted on stage, it’s wild. I feel very sorry for them.”
Major Manchester theatre show issues casting call for a DOG to star on stage
Thomas Melia
One of the world’s most famous theatre shows is coming back to Manchester, and they’ve opened a casting call in search of the ‘canine equivalent of Brad Pitt’.
The unusual casting call is seeking a ‘dog with star quality’ to star in La Bohème when it returns to the Manchester Opera House on 21 February.
Dorothy has Toto, Annie’s got Sandy and now another show is in search of a four legged companion who wouldn’t mind being in the spotlight.
La Bohème is coming to Manchester at the end of this month and as well as bringing in theatregoers to fill up all the seats, they’re also looking for one prized pooch to take centre stage.
This Italian opera, which translates to ‘The Bohemian’, tells the tale of a poor seamstress and her artist friends with all the events taking place in the city of love, Paris.
As with most casting calls there are a few regulations however the trickiest requirement may be the owner’s involvement in the production.
Your four legged friend could be the next doggy diva gracing the Manchester Opera House stage.Your pooch could be on set day-dreaming of Hollywood… or doggy treats? Credit: Supplied
Dogs are asked to be small to medium sized and very well behaved, while owners have to go on stage in costume as part of the background ensemble – get those jazz hands ready!
Award-winning opera director and producer Ellen Kent said: “People say never work with children or animals but I love to do both.
“The first time was 20 years ago when my pet cat Holly Go-Lightly was in one of my productions and was an instant hit. Since then, we’ve had horses, dogs, goldfish and even a golden eagle with a 6ft wingspan on stage.
“When we last did La Bohème in 2023 we asked local people to volunteer their pets – it was a huge success. We even used a rescue dog once and found him dozens of new owners!
“We’re a nation of animal lovers after all. I’m sure there is plenty of doggie talent out there.”
She’s also helped source a water garden in Madam Butterfly, a horse for Carmen and a pair of Afghan Hounds which featured in Rigoletto.
So there’s no better fit for this current casting call which entails finding a drama-loving doggy for La Bohème than Ellen Kent.
La Bohème is looking for an all-star pooch for their upcoming February production.La Bohème is coming to Manchester at the end of this month at Manchester Opera House.Credit: Supplied
Anyone who thinks their pup is the perfect fit for this upcoming production of La Bohème are requested to email [email protected] with photographs of your dog, including your contact number and address as well as the breed, height, weight, age and name of your dog. The show will contact you if you are successful.
La Bohème is making its grand return to Manchester Opera House on 21 February 2025 with tickets for the show available HERE.