The Sleeping Beauty - Magical whimsy, Nostalgic music, Fun romance...

"Roses began to grow up the tallest tower, where Aurora slept, and around the palace a magic forest grew…”

- Ella Bella Ballerina and The Sleeping Beauty

Once upon a time in a kingdom far far away lived a King and Queen. One day their first child was born, a daughter named Aurora. The kingdom was alight with joy and Princess Aurora was given a christening party where all the important people of the land were invited. All the lords and ladies...and of course all of the fairies. Seven to be exact...

And this is how the ballet of The Sleeping Beauty begins...

Created in 1890, the premiere of this magnificent tale took place at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg on January 15 and from that day forward The Sleeping Beauty has remained one of the most famous ballets of all time. Part of its sustaining popularity is due to the universal themes of "true love conquers all" and that "good will always triumph over evil." Not to mention gorgeous costumes, great characters and lots and lots of fun choreography.

The ballet was originally based on a lovely French story called "La Belle au Bois Dormant" (The Beauty Sleeping in the Wood) written by Charles Perrault, also the original author of Cinderella. Perrault wrote the story with a very important moral in mind that almost always gets lost in its adaptations - it’s better to wait, even if for a 100 years for the right prince rather than rush into something...

In our featured children's book this month, Ella Bella Ballerina and the Sleeping Beauty, Ella Bella travels to this far away kingdom to attend the festivities. This version varies slightly from the ballet itself, in that the Lilac Fairy is actually able to speed up time and so that the prince can come to Aurora instead of Aurora waiting. Also in this version, the prince is chosen for the princess by the Lilac fairy who only has the princess' best intentions at heart. Arranged marriages may not be ideal but I believe it's better than a prince just randomly showing up and kissing a sleeping girl...it's a bit healthier way to look at the situation.

As the ballet story continues, at the christening the first six faeries bestow their gifts upon the princess. And just as the seventh fairy, the lead fairy, starts to bestow her gift, a mean and malevolent fairy named Carabosse appears. Angry that she was not invited to the celebration, she decides to put a curse the princess. Everyone begs her not to but she does not listen. She puts a curse on the princess that says that on her 16th birthday she will prick her finger on a spinning wheel and die...

If this plot is starting to sound familiar, it is thanks to Disney's love and fascination with the ballet. Their full length animated film was inspired almost in its entirety by the ballet, right down to using much of its original music (with a few classic Disney tunes added in of course.)

That music being composed by Tchaikovsky, the famous composer of The Nutcracker if you remember. And if you are at all a fan of The Nutcracker or the Disney version of The Sleeping Beauty, you will love this ballet. Tchaikovsky really enjoyed working on the ballet. He loved including some of Perrault's other famous French fairytale characters, many of whom you are probably familiar with such as Puss in Boots, Little Red Riding Hood, Cinderella, and other famous fairytale characters including Beauty and the Beast, and Pretty Goldilocks.

At the ballet's premiere in St. Petersburg, after the performance finished, the Tsar, Alexander III summoned Tchaikovsky to his royal booth asking to speak with him. Tchaikovsky I'm sure was both nervous and excited, expecting high praise. Sadly, all the Tsar had to say to him was “very nice” as a compliment after all his hard work. Tchaikovsky was understandably annoyed that that was all he had to say about it.

Melody Mennite (Carabosse), Lauren Anderson (the Queen), and Artists of Houston Ballet

As the story moves along, as we all know, thanks to a bit of Disney nostalgia, the final fairy (in this case, the Lilac fairy), steps forward and assures the King and Queen that even though she cannot remove the curse entirely, she can heal it. She waves her magic wand and changes the curse so that the princess will only fall asleep for 100 years. The King and Queen make a proclamation across the land and ban any use of spindles or spinning wheels in the hope that no part of this curse will ever transpire...But naturally we all know what happens, on her 16th birthday, Aurora pricks her finger on a spinning wheel as predicted and falls into a glorious sleep for 100 years...

Another fun part of this ballet is the choreography, originally done by Marius Petipa and the ballet still to this day comprises one of the most famous ballet variations, called The Rose Adagio where Aurora must dance with 4 young suitors at her 16 year old birthday party. Difficult poses where the dancer must each time letting go of her suitors hand to show her independence (and her balance), this variation is one ballet dancers strive to achieve with perfection. Here is a clip of this variation danced by the UK's most famous ballerina, Margot Fonteyn, at age 50!

The Sleeping Beauty is an extremely long ballet lasting nearly 4 hours though it is rarely performed in full today. But it's definitely worth watching even the 2.5 hour version. There's a lovely one available online here adapted and choreographed from the original by my favorite choreographer, Rudolph Nureyev and it will not disappoint!

It's fun following the ballet especially if you are familiar with the Disney movie and have grown up watching your favorite characters show up and do their best to entertain you. I've found that Carabosse, Maleficent's character (pictured above) always does an excellent job of being the bad fairy and never disappoints. There are all sorts of fun bits in the ballet that you will recognize. All in all a perfect sleepy summer afternoon performance full of nostalgia, whimsy, and of course a bit of romance...

References and Further Reading:

More about the Ballet:

The Sleeping Beauty: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sleeping_Beauty_(ballet)

La Belle au Bois Dormant: https://www.colorado.edu/projects/fairy-tales/histoire-ou-contes/la-belle-au-bois-dormant

Charles Perrault: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Charles-Perrault

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyotr_Ilyich_Tchaikovsky

Marius Petipa: https://petipasociety.com/about/

More to watch, listen to and read:

Ella Bella Ballerina and The Sleeping Beauty by James Mayhew: https://www.amazon.com/Ella-Bella-Ballerina-Sleeping-Beauty/dp/0764161180

The Rose Adagio performed by Margot Fontenyn: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCqIEc70iGw

The Sleeping Beauty (full length ballet): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RkAHSXki4eI&t=322s