The appeal of the ballet Swan Lake

hồ thiên nga - Ảnh 1. — HBSO's *Swan Lake* promises not only to bring the beauty of a global art icon, but also to demonstrate how Vietnamese artists approach and create on the foundation of classical ballet heritage - Photo: H.VY

The 14th Autumn Melodies Festival and 20th Anniversary of the Ho Chi Minh City Ballet Symphony Orchestra and Opera (HBSO) has come to a successful end.

Both nights of ballet excerpts from Swan Lake and Symphony's Beethoven No.9 brought many emotions to the audience, especially young people who had the opportunity to admire the captivating beauty of this academic art form for the first time.

In the trend of young audiences becoming more civilized and integrating into the world's cultural and artistic flow, I believe you will be more open to understanding and sharing the difficulties of classical artists, thereby loving and becoming closer to this popular art form in Europe for hundreds of years.

Conductor Le Ha My affirmed

Swan Lake Ballet blends Europe and Vietnam

On the night of August 23, even though only excerpts from the classic ballet Swan Lake were performed and it was raining heavily, a large audience still arrived very early, filling all three floors of the auditorium.

At the end of each excerpt, the artists were moved by the thunderous applause. After the performance, many young people stayed behind to take photos with the actors of the HBSO ballet troupe.

"I used to study ballet but I quit. The performance made me relive my childhood dream. I really admire the artists who practiced hard to bring the eye-catching dance. I look forward to October to buy tickets to see the whole show" - Le Khanh, a fourth-year student, excitedly said.

hồ thiên nga - Ảnh 2. — Sharing with Tuoi Tre, artist Do Hoang Khang Ninh (playing the swan Odette) expressed his happiness for having completed the role completely, even though it was just an excerpt - Photo: H.VY

"Playing the role of a white swan puts pressure on me because this is a classic role. The actor must portray the swan's grace while also being delicate and fragile in every gesture, emotion, and gaze.

Tonight, I'm happy to be able to convey the emotions of Odette and the swans to the audience and receive enthusiastic cheers," ballerina Do Hoang Khang Ninh confided.

Ninh also revealed that the play currently has many endings, and he is eagerly waiting to see how the choreographer will stage the ending for HBSO's Swan Lake .

From now until October, everyone will have more time to adjust and upgrade the aesthetics and images, bringing a complete Swan Lake with more sublime emotions.

hồ thiên nga - Ảnh 3. — HBSO's version of Swan Lake is faithful to the original but is edited to suit the performance style of the ballet troupe's artists - Photo: H.VY

From a professional perspective, choreographer Nguyen Phuc Hai - head of the HBSO ballet troupe - shared that at first he was stressed because of the costume issues and having too little time to run the stage... The whole troupe had to work hard to keep up with the schedule but could temporarily "breathe a sigh of relief" when the performance ended because it was quite clean.

"Of course, technically, the artists need more time to become more proficient. The crew also has to perfect many details about the stage, setting, lighting, costumes, etc. to bring a more beautiful and sparkling version of the entire play next October," said choreographer Phuc Hai.

During the period of streamlining personnel, staging Swan Lake was a challenge. The personnel from HBSO was not enough, so we had to invite collaborators from Ho Chi Minh City Dance College and Sasa Ballet. Therefore, scheduling rehearsals was also more difficult…

But that is also a source of inspiration because when determined to perform this ballet, in addition to conquering the audience, HBSO also wants to spread the love of dance to future young actors.

hồ thiên nga - Ảnh 4. — The dance performance brings together young actors from Sasa Ballet and Ho Chi Minh City Dance College - Photo: H.VY

According to Norwegian choreographer Johanne Jakhelln Constant, staging Swan Lake is an opportunity to blend European ballet traditions with the creative energy of Vietnamese artists, creating a reborn version in a new context, with the breath of the times and HBSO's own identity.

As a "ballet monument", Swan Lake requires both skillful technique and delicate expressive ability to portray the opposites of love, destiny and liberation.

The combination of technique and emotional depth will be the ideal environment for Vietnamese artists to maximize their talent.

hồ thiên nga - Ảnh 5. — The full version of *Swan Lake* will be released in October 2025 - Photo: H.VY

A journey full of challenges and sublimation

On the night of August 24, nearly 150 artists gathered together, bringing an explosive closing night with the free anthem Egmont Overture and Beethoven 's Symphony No. 9 in D minor .

With female conductor Kerstin Behnke arranging the choir and conductor Tran Nhat Minh conducting, the audience enjoyed Beethoven's "creative peak" with four massive movements, leading emotions from conflict and tension to joy and ending with the immortal chorus Ode to Joy.

HSBO has gathered a large number of artists including familiar soloists such as Pham Khanh Ngoc, Pham Trang, Dao Mac... singing along with the orchestra and choir.

All of this creates a majestic and vibrant resonance, fully conveying this "hymn of brotherhood of all mankind".

hồ thiên nga - Ảnh 6. — Nearly 150 artists brought impressive performances to the closing night of the Autumn Melody Festival - Photo: THAI BINH

The music night also concluded the journey of sublimation with art of Autumn Melody 2025 with many challenges and memorable firsts.

Conductor Le Ha My, director of the HBSO Theater, shared that according to the usual standard, each concert night requires 5-6 days of practice and 1-2 days of performance on the weekend. But in more than a week of the festival, the artists performed up to four concerts.

That is a huge pressure because the frequency, intensity, and volume of work are multiplied many times. Every day, three times in the morning, afternoon, and evening, the artists have to practice for 2-3 different programs, constantly rotating like that.

hồ thiên nga - Ảnh 7. — Dr. and conductor Le Ha My shines with People's Artist Ta Minh Tam on the opening night

Especially with major works performed for the first time in Ho Chi Minh City such as Symphony No. 1 Titan by Gustav Mahler or Symphony No. 9 by Beethoven, the name alone exudes the scale and grandeur of the work.

Being able to play such high-class works in just one week has proven the maturity of HBSO. It is even more proud because this is the first time these works have been performed in Ho Chi Minh City with 100% of the city's artists, showing that HBSO has reached the highest peaks and is growing more and more.

Regarding ballet, HSBO is honored to touch the "dream" of Swan Lake after many years of nurturing by many generations of artists. Because the artistic career of a dancer is not long, only about 10 years.