“A Khmer Swan Lake”.  Created by Angkor Dance Troupe, Inc. Presented by Merrimack Repertory Theatre, Liberty Hall, 50 E. Merrimack Street, Lowell, through April 26.

By Michele Markarian

Every so often, one sees a performance that’s so breathtakingly artful that it’s hard to describe. A Khmer Swan Lake, created by the Angkor Dance Troupe, is one of them, presenting a gorgeous rendition of the 19th-century ballet, first scored by Tchaikovsky (which Angkor gives a periodic nod to by inserting snippets of his score at key moments). Swan Lake writer and music composer Sot Somaly has created a sometimes lilting, often dramatic and melodic recorded score of traditional Cambodian music comprised of four singers and five musicians that capture the natural world, the world of the court, and the spiritual realm accordingly. 

Read more “The Otherworldliness and Exquisite Beauty of MRT’s “A Khmer Swan Lake””