AS SOMEONE WHO HAS BEEN DANCING FOR OVER A DECADE let me launch a quick tirade of my interpretation of one of the most important aspects of Black Swan—the dance routine.

please bear with me i’m analyzing as i go

the routine begins with a tableau featuring our main dancer surrounded by people dressed in black, their hands grasping at his body—representing a type of darkness that grips him.

his hands are unfurled behind him to represent his wings—he is the swan

one of the striking imageries they form is this—mimicking the posture of a prisoner bound by shackles, his arms (feathers) pinning him back.

the swan is held prisoner by this darkness, but +

JUST LOOK AT THIS STILL IMAGE.

LOOK.

their feet are “crushing” the swan’s body.

goosebumps, right?

i don’t think i need to spell it out in words, but not only does this darkness hold him back, it also presses down on him. it represents a terrible burden.

the irony here is that:

1) as much as the darkness elevates him, holds him up in an almost worshipping manner,

2) this is also the SAME THING that pushes him down to the ground.

moving onto the next sequence:

the lighted box here = a cage.

our swan tries desperately to break through that cage, but he cant, because the other dancers in black are holding him. what do they do? pull him from behind.

it’s like trying to escape a reality you can’t run from.

THE ENTIRE sequence inside the box symbolizes his repeated attempt to get out but failing every time

each time he steps out, he is carried back in, almost like a leaf carried down by a flooding river

finally, he manages to fight off his demons and breaks free!!!

they run after him but he’s not trapped in their clutches anymore

this is where it gets super interesting.

after breaking free, the camera zooms out to reveal the first floor below. now he is on an escalator, showing that he may be on top, but he is alone.

it’s so lonely up there, on top.

the camera is framed to emphasize how SMALL he is.

so our swan goes back “down” to the ground level, where his figurative demons start attacking him again, but now he is no longer a helpless ragdoll.

now he fights back—by literally yeeting off anybody who tries to touch or control him

(i highkey think this mirrors bts’ state)

and then he does this intimidating, signature black swan pose, which if you notice closely, is repeated throughout the choreo.

THEN HERE’S MY FUCKING FAVORITE PART.

the dancers in black /start copying his movements/...instead of controlling him. he has conquered his demons.

which brings us to the ending sequence—a throwback to the exact same pose where he started: demons trying to grip him.

BUT then there’s a new pose, and that’s where the song ends.

With our free, strong black swan on top, his demons at his feet.

This is BTS.

Fade to black.

I hope this thread helped anybody who might have been confused!!

Honestly the entire dance routine is a complex story told in movements and I could very well be wrong, but this is how it resonated with me.
What do you think? #BlackSwan

FUCK I JUST REALIZED THAT THE “DARKNESS” PRETTY MUCH REPRESENTS HIS SHADOW

WHILE THE BLACK SWAN IS THE EGO

which means... the ENTIRE dance routine represents the tug-of-war between one’s shadow and ego, before ending with the understanding that shadow AND ego can co-exist