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Product Description
The glamorous, turbulent life of Britain's international ballet superstar.
At age 40, Dame Margot Fonteyn (Anne-Marie Duff The Virgin Queen, Shameless) was one of the greatest ballerinas of the 20th Century. At her creative peak, she was a woman torn between her loyalties to the Royal Ballet and her marriage to unfaithful Panamanian diplomat, Roberto de Arias (Con O'Neill Criminal Justice). Under mounting pressure to retire, Margot's unexpected pairing with young Russian émigré Rudolph Nureyev (Michiel Huisman The Young Victoria) caused a global sensation and created one of the most enduring and stunning ballet partnerships of all time. Also starring Lindsay Duncan (Alice in Wonderland), Derek Jacobi (Endgame) and Penelope Wilton (Pride & Prejudice), Margot is a timeless tale of love, performance, passion and self-sacrifice.
BONUS PROGRAM (Disc 2): The Royal Ballet
Margot Fonteyn and Michael Somes dance scenes from the ballets, Swan Lake, Firebird and Ondine.
5.0 out of 5 stars Worth it for Czinner's film of Margot Fonteyn
By Ivy Lin (NY NY)
This review is from: Margot
I am not going to comment much on the biopic, because I feel that there isn't much to say. It's nice, a bit cheesy, but there are several documentaries and books about Fonteyn that capture the woman much more vividly. Instead, my review will focus on the "bonus" that is included in the DVD package, that is the real treat for dance lovers. It is the 1960 film Paul Czinner made of Margot Fonteyn in three of her most famous roles: Swan Lake, Firebird, and Ondine. Michael Somes is her stolid partner in all three ballets.
Swan Lake is ironically maybe the least interesting excerpt. It is basically Act 2 of Swan Lake (the famous "white act"), but it inexplicably starts with the dance of the swans, and not Siegfried's entrance into the forest and his first encounter with Odette. Why cut such a crucial and iconic moment in the ballet? Nevertheless the film is interesting because it preserves on film some Swan Lake performance practices that are now for all intents and purposes extinct:
1. The famous pas de deux between Siegfried and Odette was originally a pas de trois, with Siegfried's friend Benno standing to the side and occasionally assisting Siegfried as he dances with Odette. The final pose ends with Odette lunging into Benno's arms, not Siegfried's. Today it looks awkward, but it is closer to Ivanov's original choreography.
2. Also, the practice today is to take the pas de deux at an extraordinarily slow pace. But in 1960, the pas de deux was danced at a much brisker pace, with less time for the "iconic" poses.
3. The costumes -- extremely feathery tutus that are way less sleek than they are today, and a hideous wig for Somes.
As for Fonteyn's Odette, it would be preserved in its entirety in the film she made with Rudolf Nureyev in 1966. It's often said that Fonteyn's partnership with Nureyev re-energized Fonteyn's Swan Lake, and judging from this 1960 film, one might suspect that theory is correct. Fonteyn's Odette seems a bit detached and aloof. But at the same time the film with Nureyev had one too many Nureyev quirks, and this video is probably a better representative of what Fonteyn's Odette was like at its prime in a more conventional production.
Ondine was a ballet closely associated with Fonteyn. Czinner's film is a truncated version of the ballet, but nevertheless it preserves quite well both the positives and negatives of Ashton's valentine for Fonteyn. The negatives: Hans Warner Henze's score, which has its moments of beauty, but also at times seems dissonant with the delicate fairy tale that's being portrayed by Ashton's choreography. Also, the ballet has long dull stretches (Act 3, which takes place on a ship, is particularly weak). It is only strong as a ballet when Ondine is dancing. But one sees, without a shadow of a doubt (pun intended) why Fonteyn was such a success in the role. From the first she is an enchanting water nymph. The shadow dance is simply beautiful -- Fonteyn smiles that special smile of hers, and then proceeds to play with her own shadow in a way that's mischievous, alluring, and finally seductive. Fonteyn was never great at the big jumps, or the majestic poses, but her portrayal of Ondine showed how "enchanting little steps" can make a magnificent whole.
Fonteyn learned The Firebird from the original Firebird herself, Tamara Karsavina. Of the three ballets, Firebird is my favorite. First it is presented complete, second of all Fonteyn is maybe the most complete Firebird on video. Yes her jump was weak, but Fonteyn's characterization is nothing short of amazing. The nervousness that the Firebird feels when first caught by the Prince? The slow transformation from nervous bird to knowing seductress? All of this is captured by Fonteyn perfectly. Ninette di Valois was always very proud of her beginning with the Ballet Russes, and prided herself on preserving the Ballet Russes masterpieces. So needless to say production values are very high, with Leon Bakst's original designs beautifully recreated. And most of all, Firebird stands the test of time as a magnificent ballet, and Mikhail Fokine's masterpiece.
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