In honor of Asian American Pacific Islander Month, we are amplifying the voices of our AAPI artists, staff, and community at Boston Ballet.

Hear from Principal Dancer Chisako Oga on performing the role of Odette and Odile in Swan Lake, and its its’ symbolic representation of her journey to becoming a principal dancer.

"One of the first full length ballets I performed after joining a professional ballet company was Swan Lake. I started my Swan Lake journey as a corps swan, then moved onto being a cygnet, and in 2022, I had the honor of making my debut as Odette/Odile. Like many other dancers, I consider Swan Lake to be the epitome of ballet, so to climb the ranks throughout my career and to be given the opportunity to explore the lead role in this iconic ballet was truly a dream come true.

The role is so complex given that you have two very different personalities to portray in one show. Odette is the queen of the swans. She embodies a pure heart, kindness, and generosity. She is always asking for no harm to be done on her fellow swans and will put herself in harms way to protect others. Odile, like Odette, is beautiful, but different from Odette due to her seductive and manipulative personality. She enjoys the challenge of tricking Prince Siegfried into thinking that she is Odette, but she also cannot hide her true self.

My journey to becoming Odette/Odile is in many ways similar to my journey to becoming a principal dancer. It isn’t easy and it comes with its ups and downs, but the end result is something so special that you continue to work for it. Every chance that a dancer revisits a role, they bring a breath of fresh air to it and have a more mature take on it. I look forward to finding my transformation from the last time I performed Swan Lake in 2022 to this next time next season and I hope that I can create a performance that touches the hearts of the audience members." -Principal Dancer Chisako Oga