CULLMAN – Cullman Ballet Theatre will present “Swan Lake” tonight at 7 p.m. at the Betty Leeth Haynes Theater on the campus of Wallace State. A second performance will be presented on June 4 at 2:30 p.m.
The timeless piece has been amended by dance veteran and longtime Cullman ballet instructor Elaine Willingham to best fit those who are performing.
“I have adjusted the music to suit my dancers because the choreography is a very demanding and the story too long for small children dancing in the ballet,” she explained.
“I came up with the idea this time last year of using parts of ‘Swan Lake’ for our next recital season of performances,” Willingham said. “I didn't really decide to do the entire story until the fall when I realized I needed to have a prince to make the story be told correctly. So, I talked to boys in the theater at Cullman High School and at Wallace college to find who would be interested.”
Willingham says she will have five different boys in the production. Since there will be two performances, it gives more dancers an opportunity to be the lead characters, according to Willingham.
The prince for the June 1 show will be Patrick Jimenez, and Odette will be performed by Gloria Smith. For June 4, the prince will be Tanner Muncey and Odette, Brittany Lee. The girls will also share the role of Odile, the daughter of Rothbart, the evil sorcerer danced by Riley Adams. Playing the parts of friends of the prince will be Jady Pipes and Joseph Jimenez. Shirley Quattlebaum will be the queen, mother to the prince.
“We have 100 dancers in ‘Swan Lake,’ but we divide the youngest dancers between the two performances so it will be less hectic backstage and not make the program too long,” she said.
Willingham says anyone in the community can benefit from attending this production. “I always try to make it more of a performance and to educate the dancers and my community about the beauty of classical ballet and classical music. This is a great ballet for all to see even if you don't know any of the dancers.”
Tickets are $12 in advance and $15 at the door. Online tickets are available here.
