This essay will study and design an exploration of the piece, Swan Lake by Matthew Bourne. Explore notions of gender identity and how society has constructed norms of behavior specific to that particular sex. Discussing the views of Susan L. Foster (2009) and as she states “The performance of highly gendered actions by both male and female bodies offers a powerful representation of the feminine as a gendered construct.” Foster exclaims that gender roles within performances are socially constructed, I will challenge this perspective when analyzing Bourne's Piece. Throughout my essay I will examine this statement, but through masculinity within performances, for example how Bourne transformed what was seen as something feminine into something masculine. Adshead's dance model analysis examines performances in "deep and informative" ways to understand how dance was constructed. This analysis model interprets dance through phases consisting of dance description, form discernment, interpretation and evaluation. I will use this process to study Matthew Bourne's pas de duex in the second act of Swan Lake. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Considering the movements of both dancers to understand why each move was created and how the performance of the pas de deux differs from what would be considered a "standard" male and female duet you might see in a ballet traditional. According to an online forum, gender identity is recognized as “a personal conception of oneself as male or female”. Gender identity is how a person describes themselves as male or female and differs from their sex type. This means that, from birth, you are given your gender identity based on your biological sex. The specification of a person can be divided into two main characteristics, namely being binary (man or woman) and non-binary (a person who chooses not to associate with traditional identity roles). Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake indirectly refers to a non-binary identification when it comes to gender roles. Bourne cast all male dancers in roles that would conventionally be played by women, challenging gender identities within what was once seen as "traditional". Bourne's interpretation of Swan Lake differs from the traditional production composed by Pyotr IIyich Tchaikovsky. The original depiction of Swan Lake consists of a prince, Siegfried, who goes on a hunt one evening and follows a congregation of swans. During the show we see one of the swans transform into a woman, Odette, exclaiming that she and the other swans were transformed by Baron von Rothbart who is the typical 'evil' character. The love story between Siegfried and Odette begins to blossom, but the spell that Odette is under can only be broken by someone who has never loved before and must confess his eternal love for her. The story continues to unfold and ends in tragedy when both the prince and Odette live together. This is an example of what is commonly seen as a traditional ballet plot, showing two main characters with higher authority (the prince and princess) and involving them romantically with each other, for the production to provoke some form of devastation thus leaving the audience. with a sense of remorse. Instead, Bourne decides to move away from traditional narrative and creates a modernized concoction of Swan Lake. Hisnarrative consists of a prince who is overshadowed by his controlling mother figure and finds himself in awe of a swan, as he sees the swan as something he has never had and has desired and which should not be seen only as a real figure. and as someone “who needs, in the most basic and simple way, to be held.” The main component of Bourne that distinguishes itself from Tchaikovsky's version is the casting of exclusively male Swans who would traditionally be played by women. When this production was announced, there was speculation: some “couldn't accept the concept of a male swan” and most “thought it would be a parody, with men in drag”. Opinions began to broaden within the theater society and “when people heard that the swans in Bourne's version were all male, the immediate connotation was that they must be homosexual”. Many couldn't come to terms with the idea that males could play female characters. For the most part, the new interpretation of what was known as a "classical" ballet agitated viewers, due to the fact that it was a controversial plot. In the 1995 era, it wasn't a common occurrence to see men playing female roles. Most people associate a swan with a delicate figure, for example Bourne states that he "daydreamed during many performances of Swan Lake, thinking that the dancing tutu conveyed only one aspect of swans", namely their exquisiteness and grace. Society has made us believe that within ballets some genders must fill certain roles depending on their physical appearance. Society manipulates what is understood as feminine or masculine and that women should be feminine and delicate and that men should be masculine and strong. Swan Lake was given the label “gay ballet”, this claim led Bourne to “continually refute with great difficulty, due to society's definitions of masculinity”. The Independent article states: “This depiction of male love, both fierce and tender, was revolutionary; decades later, it's still quite rare to see anything other than heterosexual love on the dance stage. This quote further highlights that non-normative gender configurations are still seen as something “out of the ordinary” and that males are not expected to perform a “typical” female role or vice versa for females. Matthew Bourne says: “Obviously ballet is full of princes and princesses, but let's say there's more to them than the more formal side that ballet usually shows. We are saying that royalty has another side: that there are real people beneath that balletic exterior” (Macaulay, 1999). This shows that within his piece he tried to convey a deeper message, highlighting how traditional ballets only show the simplest form of a person's characteristics; showing the idea that the characters played by the artists have a one-dimensional personality, so if they smile this should show the audience that they are happy, but this is not always the case. Continuing from this topic, in relation to gender identity, what Matthew Bourne says about how "kingship has another side" and "that there are real people underneath that balletic exterior" has indirect relevance to gender, in sense that people may be seen as male or female individuals on the outside but that is not necessarily how they might feel on the inside. In "Bourne's Act II pas de deux, of course, is instead between two men, but still obviously represents romantic love, thus challenging how men relate to each other in dance." In this section Bournecreates a crucial moment in the performance. Creating a pas de deux between two men was not seen as a "normal" approach within a ballet performance. His choreographic choices were obviously intentional in order to “dramatically question the traditional gender constructions of classical ballet.” Her intentions with this created a distinct perspective on gender identity and how ideas surrounding what is known as being feminine can go beyond and break this barrier that many perceive as normality. Ballets have begun to bow to conventional standards and now “rely on what have become “norms”, standards and traditions make the art form, and gender roles form an important part of it, as traditionally there are ways and roles in which every gender dances. ” (Golucke, 2015). During my research I studied and analyzed in detail the Pas de Section Deux between the Prince and the Swan. According to Brennan, “analysis is the examination of a whole to distinguish its component parts” by breaking down a piece and looking at it in depth to understand the concept of why it was made a particular way. Using Adshead's analysis model I examined the pas de deux section in great detail to obtain a “deep and informed response to the dance itself” (Adshead, 1988). At the beginning of the pas de duex the comparison of levels shown by the prince and the swan indicates different authoritarian roles. The prince kneeling in the back corner of the stage shows a vulnerable personality that is comparable to the higher level of the swan in the back corner of the stage. This leveling arrangement may imply a relationship to how the swan holds authority over the prince, presenting a sense of control. The vulnerability that the prince displays in the opening section of the pas de deux can often be seen as related to a feminine quality. We often see that most males take on more dominant roles. Bourne upended this gender normality by allowing a male character to embody weakness on stage. The way Swan uses and dominates the stage suggests that he is in power; by moving with flashy and extravagant gestures, the swan demonstrates to the audience the idea that he is in control. This choice of levels between the two clearly highlights the different personalities of the two characters. In all aspects of the duet, the swan creates seductive movements towards the prince, thus demonstrating a more feminine role in many dance pieces. A female character is commonly known to seduce a male, however in Bourne's interpretation he has a male figure seduce another male. Creating a dramatic effect, the swan maintains constant focus on the prince during his solo moment, the intense glow that the swan encompasses, creates superiority and demonstrates "manly" qualities that contradict the traditional angelic essence that swans usually convey. At around 2 minutes and 34 seconds into the duet we begin to see a more "loving" contact between the couple, as the swan delicately places her arm against the prince's face in a slow gesture, thus portraying to the audience the connection they have . with each other. In addition to the romantic elements we see, at 3:13 the gestures transition from rapid dynamics to calmer, softer articulations with their bodies. At 4:34 the prince holds the swan tightly around his neck and contracts his body towards the swan, the swan then cradles the prince like a baby. The way the swan holds the prince in this section adds to the element of vulnerability that has been shown throughout the section. Continuing from this, the way the prince holds the swan further demonstrates to the audience that the princes want and have. 2019].