Abstract (eng)
The present thesis deals with the dramaturgical concept of the Swan Lake variations Illusions – like Swan Lake by John Neumeier, Swan Lake by Matthew Bourne, and Black Swan by Darren Aronofsky. Both the film director and the choreographers transport the myth of Swan Lake into the 20th century, and develop three entirely different stories based on themes from the original ballet.
In addition to a chapter on terminology, the first part of the thesis deals with the development of the Swan Lake original and the life of its composer Peter Iljitsch Tschaikowsky. Three essays then each cover one Swan Lake variation respectively. Starting with the choreographer’s or the director’s biography and the respective formation of a Swan Lake production, the essay moves on to analyse the relationships of the protagonists and their surrounding characters. The focus of these analyses lies on the protagonist’s emotional development in view of the dramaturgical concept of illusion and insanity, which unites the three Swan Lake interpretations. In order to carve out the differences and commonalities between the three productions, the final chapter compares each variation by looking at the implementation of the main themes that shape each respective version of Swan Lake.
This thesis particularly examines the relationships of the respective protagonist as these relations can be considered to trigger the protagonist’s emotional development towards illusion and insanity. Therefore, illusion and insanity, as a superordinate concept of this thesis, remain the logical starting point for the dramaturgical concept that forms the basis of all three productions.