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Performance: White Swan Pas de Deux

Lesson time 05:09 min

Watch as Misty and her dance partner, Calvin Royal III, perform the White Swan pas de deux. Sharing the story of Swan Lake, Misty emphasizes the importance of understanding both your role and your partner’s to create a compelling performance.

Students give MasterClass an average rating of 4.7 out of 5 stars

Topics include: The Story of Swan Lake

Misty Copeland

Teaches Ballet Technique and Artistry

American Ballet Theatre principal dancer Misty Copeland teaches you how to build your technique, embrace your story, and own your movement.

Preview

[MUSIC PLAYING] CREW: In front of the marker. Misty, set? - Yep. CREW: And play back. [MUSIC - "SWAN LAKE OP. 20 ACT II"] - Yay! That was good! - Thanks. All right. [MUSIC PLAYING] - The story of "Swan Lake" starts out with a prologue where you see this young girl who is human. And she's kind of wandering through the forest. And she gets stopped by a stranger, a man. And as soon as she gets close enough, he kind of takes hold of her. And he ends up being von Rothbart, which is like this, I don't know, like, sorcerer-type character that puts a spell on her and kind of does this-- has been doing this for long periods of time, where he's turning these women into swans. And there's a prince who it is now time for him to marry. And so it's his birthday. And he's given a bow as a gift. And so he goes off to the lake. And that's where he sees Odette for the first time, which is the white swan. She's the queen of the swans. And that role, in particular-- Odette-- is such an iconic role within the ballet repertoire. And so they have a whole interaction where he's trying to express to her, like, I'm not here to hurt you. Like, he's just kind of fascinated by the beauty he sees with this woman that's not really a human. And so the whole second act is this relationship building. They kind of have this understanding. And she's falling for him. He has sworn, you know, to-- to marry her and to have her heart. And she's trying to tell them that if he swears to marry me and then ends up, you know, falling in love with someone else, then the spell will never be broken. And then she will forever remain a swan. So in the third act, von Rothbart comes back, the one who turned her into a swan. And he says, we have to find a way to distract him and to get him to fall in love with someone else. So he has Odile come to the party. She's typically played by the same dancer. So when I do "Swan Lake," I will play the white swan and the black swan, even though they're supposed to be different people. And what has become one of the most famous parts of "Swan Lake," which are the 32 fouettÃ©s, the point of that part of the story is to create this whirlwind, this swirling movement that makes him just lose his mind. But the act ends where he goes to swear that he's going to love this other swan, which he thinks is the white swan. And then it's revealed that it's not her. And so he's kind of ruined everything. And that's kind of, like, the end of the opportunity for them to ever be together. And so in the fourth act, it ends with her, kind of, jumping off of a cliff and killing herself. And then he follows through with her and jumps off and kills himself. And so the whole thing ends with us together in heaven-- quite the tragedy. Drama.

About the Instructor

As the first African American female principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre, Misty Copeland made history. Now she’s one of the world’s most influential dancers, and she’s inviting you to the barre to develop a deeper appreciation for ballet and the language of dance. From pliés to partners, Misty demonstrates her techniques and teaches you to own your movement, own who you are, and do the dance only you can do.

Featured MasterClass Instructor

Misty Copeland

American Ballet Theatre principal dancer Misty Copeland teaches you how to build your technique, embrace your story, and own your movement.

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