The language barrier dissolved Saturday evening in Memorial Hall between the Russian-speaking Bolshoi Ballet dancers and the English-speaking audience members.
The company's movements to the N.C. Symphony's interpretation of Tchaikovsky's music under the baton of Bolshoi orchestral conductor Pavel Sorokin" could manifest expressions that words could not.
""There should be a list of human wonders of the world" and this would be at top of the list" Chapel Hill resident Mary Phillips said. It was marvelous.""
Intricate costuming" lighting and scenery completed the ballet's mystical effect transporting the audience back to the late 19th century when the ballet was first choreographed for the Bolshoi.
And it was clear that the work had been created especially for this company. Each dancer lived their roles as though the music and the movement ran through their veins.
One of the most memorable moments and the most famous was the scene of 24 swan maidens on the lake" in which each dancer seemed to channel her movements precisely into the larger form.
""It's almost as if it is one heart beat" one animal" said Lee Anne McClymont, of Hillsborough. They just smile" and they reach" and they're not mechanical.""
Gov. Bev Perdue" who joined the audience for Saturday's performance" expressed her excitement for the Bolshoi's performance.
""Who would have thought that we in North Carolina would have the Bolshoi?"" she said.
""It's just breath-taking for a state. People from all over the country and all over the world are here tonight.""
Sylvia Jolles" originally from London and now a new resident of Raleigh has been following the Bolshoi since she was a child. She said she especially enjoys their athleticism beauty" miming and humor.
""I also think the whole thing is good for American relations with Russia" and the way to do it is through culture" she said.
Jess Isaiah Levin, who has been playing violin for the N.C. Symphony since 1974, said this was the first time the symphony had ever done the complete ballet performance of Swan Lake.
It's been a wonderful experience" he said. It's frustrating of course not to be able to see any of it. I love the ballet and I wish I could be out there" especially with a magnificent company like the Bolshoi. But it's a lot of fun.""
N.C. Symphony General Manager Scott Freck said accompanying the Bolshoi was a unique undertaking for the Symphony"" which has rehearsed the music for just a week amid other performances.
""I don't think we've ever done anything quite like this before"" he said. It's been a total honor for the orchestra to play in the pit for what is really the world's foremost ballet company. There's really nothing like it.""
Hannah Davis" a 13-year-old aspiring dancer from Chapel Hill said one of her favorite parts was watching Ekaterina Shipulina" who played the lead roles of Odette and Odile.
""As soon as she comes onstage" your eyes go straight to her" she said. It's like you don't see anything else.""
Though the show is called ""Swan Lake" former New York Times dance critic Anna Kisselgoff warned against misinterpretations at a lecture at the Ackland Art Museum's Art After Dark on Friday.
Please please don't think that Siegfried the hapless prince falls in love with a bird. I can't imagine that she said to an uproar of laughter.
As a woman" she goes into swanlike arabesques. But she is a woman.""
It was difficult" however to think of Shipulina as anything but a swan. Her elegance and fluidity mirrored that of the graceful bird as she floated and fluttered across the stage in the most natural way.
In ballet especially with companies as talented and precise as the Bolshoi it is easy to get caught up in the footwork of the dancers. But the expression of the characters is often in their eyes as much as it is in their feet.
For instance Shipulina transforms herself from the beautiful swan princess Odette into the dark maiden Odile by narrowing her eyes and curling the corners of her mouth.
The adaptation that the Bolshoi are performing in Chapel Hill is at least the fifth version of choreography. It was choreographed in 2001 by Yuri Grigorovich though the minor intricacies of movement continue to evolve even today.
Emil Kang UNC's executive director for the arts" credited the week's success with the cooperation of Carolina Performing Arts staff and the University.
""If any one thing doesn't work" it just falls apart he said. It's very much analogous to the dancers" the orchestra and the conductor.""
Hollins University President Nancy Gray" who came from Virginia specifically for the event" said she was impressed.
""As a university president"" I want you to know that I don't know how UNC could have done this any better than you all have.""
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