Odile and Odette by Brew / August 4
Ever a devote fan of the ballet, I have often been shamed by the fact that I had never seen Yinka Shonibare’s piece Odile and Odette, 2005. I finally had the opportunity to experience the 14 minute film; I sat through it twice. If you’re not up on Shonibare you had better get your Wiki on and head to the Brooklyn Museum for his exhibition Yinka Shonibare MBE. Shonibare is known for colliding Victorian garments with African-inspired prints, often placing his Victorian garbed mannequins in sexual errr…orgiastic positions as satirical commentary of Victorian contradictions.
Odile and Odette, 2005, is Shonibare’s version of a scene from Swan Lake, where the evil Odile pretends to be the innocent Odette to seduce the Prince. Traditionally, both parts are played by the same dancer, wearing different costumes of course: Black for the evil Odile and White for the innocent Odette. In Shonibare’s remix, he uses two dancers, and exchanges costumes for race. Perfect syncronization. Flawless lines.
Art is subjective, so what Shonibare is saying is open to interpretation. It’s pretty much accepted that the two dancers are used in tradition of Tchaikovsky’s characters, to convey the ideas of color and race associations of Black is evil and darkness, and White is purity and innocence. Or it’s meant to show off his amazing tutus and the dancers’ gorgeous lines.
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