Dance Review by Jack Anderson

SWANS WITH BOLSHOI TOUCH

The swans were both enchanted and enchanting when American Ballet Theater offered a repeat performance of Swan Lake on Tuesday night at the Metropolitan Opera House.

Nina Ananiashvili starred in the dual role of Odette, the swan queen, and Odile, the sorcerer’s daughter who disguises herself as Odette. Julio Bocca was Prince Siegfried, the hero, who loves Odette but is tricked by Odile.

Now a principal dancer with the company, Ms. Ananiashvili arrived at Ballet Theater from the Bolshoi Ballet in Moscow. Like many Bolshoi-trained ballerinas, she is unusually fluid in style. Movements rippled through her body and she emphasized Odette’s avian nature with birdlike flutterings...

Ms. Ananiashvili’s Odile was even more impressive. The quiverings gave way to big, bold, incisive movements. Whereas her Odette was vulnerable, her Odile was commanding. Her Black Swan pas de deux with Mr. Bocca was especially exciting. She replaced the ballerina’s traditional glittering solo with a more sinuous variation. But in the duet’s most famous traditional passage, - the sequence of whipping fouette turns, her whirling was dizzying to behold.

Mr. Bocca, an Argentine-born dancer, was an eager, impulsive Siegfried. This prince’s energy constantly set him soaring. Moreover, Mr. Bocca’s interpretation was interesting for several dramatic touches: for instance, his impatience and dismay when Siegfried learned that it was time for him to choose a bride and the way he stared blankly into spare when prospective brides waltzed before him.