The Sleeping Beauty

When she is finally released from an evil spell by the kiss of a young prince, the Sleeping Beauty awakes and is – inspite of a hundred years of sleep– as beautiful as a young woman. The love of the prince is simply stronger than the curse that rests on the haunted princess. The artistic director of the Staatsballett Berlin, Nacho Duato, has brought new life to this beloved classic, which itself is over a hundred years old and for which Peter I Tchaikovsky has composed the unforgettable music.

This production demonstrates that Nacho Duato, who to the Berlin public has been so far mainly known for modern choreographies, can also tackle classical ballets with dance en pointe with great success. Nothing in this production is old and dusty, rather the entire choreography looks fresh and is bursting with vitality and brings an air of spring to the stage.

The costumes by Angelina Atlagic deserve likewise admiration as they sparkle on stage like spring buds in morning dew. The stage design, also designed by Atlagic, offers as refined setting for the ballet fairy tale. The decor of this production is highly imaginative and colorful, yet at the same times very elegant and stylish. The superior freshness of the production has yet another reason: For his "Sleeping Beauty" Duato omitted unnecessary ballast and has deleted scenes that do not advance the plot. His focus is mainly on the characters. By doing so, Duato wants to lure people to the ballet who are not (yet) ballet lovers.

Non-experts should be told: The ballet "Sleeping Beauty" follows in its plot the French version by Charles Perrault: At her baptism Princess Aurora is cursed by the evil fairy Carabosse. On her 16th birthday the curse becomes reality. Aurora pricks herself on a spindle and falls into a hundred-year-long sleep. Finally, Prince Desiré finds the way to Aurora's bed and kisses the princess awake. The inevitable end: a fairytale wedding.
With kind support of Freunde und Förderer des Staatsballetts Berlin e.V.