The Sleeping Beauty

The Sleeping Beauty - Rudolf Nureyev

Ballet in a prologue and three acts
from the tale La Belle au bois dormant by Charles Perrault

Libretto by M. Petipa and I.A. Vsevoložskij

The most sumptuous and dreamlike ballet, almost the “ballet par excellence”: The Sleeping Beauty, when it was first performed in St Petersburg in 1890, saw the development of an exemplary collaboration between choreographer (Petipa), composer (Tchaikovsky), and the director of the Imperial Theatres, Vsevoložskij, who also created the costumes, to present to the Petersburg nobility the fabulous grandeur of the court of King Louis XIV. It was at La Scala that Nureyev entrusted the debut of his Sleeping Beauty in 1966, performing on stage alongside Carla Fracci in a role considered a key ballet in his artistic life. From the original choreography, Nureyev managed to preserve its purity while infusing it with a new theatrical breath, with a complex choreography that revealed the characters’ psychology, the Prince among them. Six years after the previous performances, the production returns in the setting created by Oscar-winning designer Franca Squarciapino for La Scala in 1993, splendid in its exquisite décor and costumes evoking the court of Versailles.

Synopsis

Setting

Time: Baroque

Place: Europe

Prologue — Le baptême de la Princesse Aurore
King Florestan XXIV and his Queen have welcomed their first child, Princess Aurora, and declare a grand christening ceremony to honor her. Six fairies are invited to the ceremony to bestow gifts on the child. Each fairy brings a gift of a virtue or positive trait, such as beauty, courage, sweetness, musical talent, and mischief. The most powerful fairy, the Lilac Fairy,[13] arrives with her entourage, but before she can bestow her gift, the evil fairy Carabosse arrives with her minions.[14] Carabosse furiously asks the King and Queen why she had not received an invitation to the christening. The blame falls on Catalabutte, the Master of Ceremonies who was in charge of the guest list. Carabosse gleefully tears his wig off and beats him with her staff, before placing a curse upon the baby princess as revenge: Aurora will indeed grow up to be a beautiful, healthy, delightful young lady, but on her sixteenth birthday she will prick her finger on a spindle and die. The King and Queen are horrified and beg Carabosse for mercy, but she shows none. However, the Lilac Fairy intervenes. Though she does not have enough power to completely undo the curse, she alters it, allowing the spindle to send Aurora into a 100-year deep sleep, rather than death. At the end of those 100 years, she will be woken by the kiss of a handsome prince. Relieved that Aurora's life will ultimately be spared, the court is set at ease.

Act I — Les quatre fiancés de la Princesse Aurore
It is the day of Princess Aurora's sixteenth birthday. Celebrations are underway, though the King is still unsettled by Carabosse's omen. The master of ceremonies discovers several peasant ladies frolicking about with knitting needles and alerts the King, who initially sentences the women to a harsh punishment. The Queen gently persuades him to spare the innocent citizens, and he agrees. An elaborate waltz is performed and Princess Aurora arrives.[15][16] She is introduced to four suitors by her doting parents. Aurora and the suitors perform the famous Rose Adagio.[17] Presently, a cloaked stranger appears and offers a gift to the princess: a spindle. Having never seen one before, Aurora curiously examines the strange object as her parents desperately try to intervene. As predicted, she pricks her finger.[18] While initially appearing to recover quickly, Aurora is soon sent into sleep. The cloaked stranger reveals herself to be Carabosse, who believes that her curse still stands and that the princess is dead. Once again, the Lilac Fairy quells the hubbub and reminds the King and Queen that Aurora is not dead, but asleep. The princess is carried off to bed, and the Lilac Fairy casts a spell of slumber over the entire kingdom, which will only be broken when Aurora awakens. A thick layer of thorny plants grows over the palace, hiding it from view.

Act II, Scene I — La chasse du Prince Désiré
One hundred years later, Prince Désiré is attending a hunting party. Though his companions are lighthearted, the prince is unhappy and eventually asks to be left alone. On his own in the forest, he is met by the Lilac Fairy, who has chosen him to awaken Aurora. She shows him a vision of the beautiful princess, and the prince is immediately smitten.[19] The Lilac Fairy explains the situation, and Désiré begs to be taken to the princess. The Lilac Fairy takes him to the hidden castle. Carabosse makes one last attempt to cement her vengeful curse, but the Lilac Fairy and the prince manage to defeat her together at last.

Act II, Scene II — Le château de la belle au bois dormant
Once inside the castle, Désiré awakens Aurora with a kiss. The rest of the court wakes as well, and the King and Queen heartily approve when the prince proposes marriage and the princess accepts.

Act III — Les noces de Désiré et d'Aurore
The royal wedding is under way. Guests include the Jewel Fairies: Diamond, Gold, Silver and Sapphire, and of course the Lilac Fairy. Fairytale characters are in attendance, including Puss in Boots and The White Cat, Princess Florine and the Bluebird, and others. Aurora and Désiré perform a grand Pas de Deux, and the entire ensemble dances. The prince and princess are married, with the Lilac Fairy blessing the union.

Program and cast

Choreography and Staging: RUDOLF NUREYEV

Music: PËTR IL’IČ ČAJKOVSKIJ

Sets and costumes: FRANCA SQUARCIAPINO

Conductor: KEVIN RHODES

Lights: ANDREA GIRETTI

Teatro alla Scala Ballet Company and Orchestra

Teatro alla Scala Production