It is a classic fairytale, filled with princes, princesses, sorcerers, evil, magic spells, and true love. Act 1 Set in medieval Germany, we find ourselves in a park in front of a castle. In the middle of the party, the Princess-Mother tells the prince he must select a bride in the near future. The Prince and his friends set off to go hunting in the woods in order to forget his princely responsibilities. Next we find we are on the banks of a lake.
Swans swim across the lake, one of which wears a crown.
The hunters enter with the Prince, who orders them to proceed with the hunt and leave him alone. He meets a beautiful woman, all in white - Odette, the Swan Queen. The Prince approaches her and calms her fears. He asks her who she is and why she is there. She tells him that the lake was formed by the tears her parents wept after the evil magician Von Rothbart kidnapped her.