The story of the slumbering princess goes back several centuries and went through numerous versions before Perrault was inspired by an Italian tale to write what would become the Sleeping Beauty that we know today. On the day of her christening, an infant princess receives a curse from the fairy Carabosse, whom no one invited to the fete; the fairy wishes for Aurora to prick her finger and die on the day of her 16th birthday. Fortunately, another fairy succeeds in easing the princess’ plight by having her fall instead into a deep sleep of 100 years. Only true love’s kiss will awaken her.
In the staging presented by Les Grands Ballets with lavish sets and costumes, choreographer Marcia Haydée has gone back to the original version by Marius Petipa and retains the essence of the 19th-century classical ballet. However, the role of the evil fairy plays a much more important role than in the original. Carabosse as reimagined by Haydée becomes a central and nuanced character, personifying Evil – but Good as well, since no being is totally Evil.
"Wow! It's a fabulous show.(…) Of all the ballets I had the chance to see in my life, The Sleeping Beauty is certainly the most splendid : the beautiful stage set, hundreds of costumes, the revised story, the wigs, the dancers who are absolutely fantastic, and the choreographies by Marcia Haydée."
Franco Nuovo in "Pénélope" radio show, Ici Radio-Canada
"A grandiose ballet you shouldn't miss!"
Emilie Leclerc, Sors-tu.ca
"It was a night of the wildest dreams. The choreography, the costumes, the stage set : everything was splendor, greatness and wonder (...). Sophisticated and princely costume, shimmering or colourful, always splendid and detailed... A ballet of perfect beauty and precision."
Luce Langis, patwhite.com
Artistic Director: Ivan Cavallari
Choreography: Marcia Haydée after Marius Petipa
Set and costumes: Pablo Nuñez
Lighting: Marcia Haydée, Pablo Nuñez and Marc Parent
Music: Piotr Ilitch Tchaïkowsky
Les Grands Ballets Orchestra conducted by Dmitri Zrajevski
Total Running Time: 2 hours 43 minutes (including the intermission)
* Prologue (36 minutes)
* Act I (32 minutes)
* Intermission (20 minutes)
* Act II (34 minutes)
* Act III (41 minutes)
This production was created in 1987 by Marcia Haydée for the Stuttgart Ballet. The sets and costumes of this production presented by Les Grands Ballets were created in 2011 for the Opera Ballet Vlaanderen.
PROLOGUE
The long-awaited day is finally here. The palace halls ring with a flurry of excitement as King Florestan and the Queen beam with pride over their daughter, Princess Aurora. Today is her Christening, and the six Good Fairies have arrived to bestow their gifts upon the young girl, their Goddaughter.
With a jolt, a crack of thunder and lightning announce the arrival of the evil fairy Carabosse and end the festive mood. She is livid at not having been invited to partake in the important day. The Good Fairies try to calm her but are unable to prevent her from casting a horrible spell on the Princess. On her 16th birthday, it is declared, Princess Aurora will prick her finger on a spindle and die. The King and Queen fall into despair. The Lilac Fairy, who had not yet presented her gift to the Princess, succeeds in softening Carabosse’s curse with a spell of her own. Princess Aurora is protected from death, but will fall into a 100-year slumber that can only be broken by true love’s kiss.
INTERLUDE
Time passes, and Princess Aurora blossoms into a young woman under the watchful protection of the Lilac Fairy. Yet, Carabosse always lingers near, anticipating the fateful day when her curse will unfold.
ACT I. THE SLEEP
In the palace garden, King Florestan and the Queen are hosting a lavish party for Princess Aurora’s 16th birthday. Among the guests are four princes who have come to vie for the Princess’ affection. An elderly woman, hiding in plain sight, makes her way to the Princess’ side and gifts her a bouquet of roses. Little does Princess Aurora know, the elderly woman is actually Carabosse, and a spindle is hidden in the bouquet. While admiring the flowers, Aurora pricks her finger and falls under spell. She is laid in her bed, destined to sleep for 100 cursed years. When the whole court falls victim to the enchanted sleep, the Lilac Fairy creates a thick forest to conceal and protect the kingdom until the curse can be broken. Enraged at having been thwarted, Carabosse slips away to plot her revenge.
ACT II. THE KISS
A century later, there is another royal party where a young prince is being courted. Prince Désiré longs for solitude and escapes the party, and the many women there trying to charm him, by going for a walk in the forest. Carabosse has spotted him, but so have the Lilac Fairy and the forest nymphs. The Lilac Fairy acts first, conjuring a vision of sleeping Princess Aurora. As if in a dream, Prince Désiré begins to dance with Aurora and falls completely in love. Hopeful, the Lilac Fairy leads him to the sleeping kingdom to find and awaken her.
Carabosse stakes out the Prince from the thorny rose thicket and pounces on him with a spell. The Lilac Fairy comes to his rescue, returning the spell against Carabosse. When Prince Désiré finally makes it to Aurora’s bedside, he falls to his knees and kisses her, breaking her curse.
ACT III. THE WEDDING
The whole kingdom has awoken from their cursed sleep and rejoices in preparing the wedding between Princess Aurora and Prince Désiré. The guestlist includes beloved fairytale characters who make special appearances for this joyous event. The Lilac Fairy blesses the couple’s union and continues to watch over them, but Carabosse never remains far, awaiting her moment of reprisal.
Cast and orchestra
Latest update on June 1st 2022. Cast is subject to change up until the start of the performance.
Ballet masters: Hervé Courtain et Marina Villanueva
King Florestan XIV
Andrew Gidday
The Queen
Anne Dryburgh
Cantalabutte
Hervé Courtain
Carabosse
Roddy Doble (June 1 at 8 p.m. and June 5 at 2 p.m.)
Hamilton Nieh (June 2 at 8 p.m. and June 4 at 2p.m.)
Célestin Boutin (June 3 and 4 at 8 p.m.)
Lilac Fairy
Myriam Simon (June 1 and at 8 p.m. and June 5 at 2 p.m.)
Vanesa G.R Montoya (June 2 at 8 p.m. and June 4 at 2 p.m.)
Maude Sabourin (June 3 and 4 at 8 p.m.)
Enchanted Garden Fairy
Kiara Flavin
Crystal Fountain Fairy
Anna Ishii (June 1, 3, 4 at 8 p.m. and June 5 at 2 p.m.)
Mai Kono (June 2 juin at 8 p.m. and June 4 at 2 p.m.)
Woodland Glade Fairy
Mai Kono (June 1, 3, 4 at 8 p.m. and June 5 at 2 p.m.)
Catherine Toupin (June 2 at 8 p.m. and June 4 at 2 p.m.)
Fairy of Songbirds
Kiara Felder
Fairy of Golden Vine
Anya Nesvitaylo
Cavaliers
James Lyttle, Graeme Fuhrman, Felixovich Morante, Stephen Satterfield, Antoine Bertran, José Losada
Carabosse Monsters
François Gagné, Théodore Poubeau
Small Cavaliers
Elias Shanski, Nahla Desrosiers, Milan Rochon, Caleb St-Jean, Yihan Athena Chen, Roméo Gault
Courtiers
Quentin Nabor, Étienne Delorme, François Gagné, Théodore Poubeau, Santiago Merchant, Angel Vizcaino, Juan Sebastian Hoyos Correra
Court Women
Catherine Toupin, Carrigan MacDonald, Tatiana Lerebours, Tuesday Leduc, Sarah-Maude Laliberté, Mikaela Milic, Maude Fleury
Young Aurora
Emiko Addleman, Alice Clement, Léonore Genois
Nanny
Claudia Colonna
Small monsters
Thalie Turene, Sunny Chen, Princesse-Rose Gonzalez, Héloïse Pilon
King Florestan, The Queen, Cantalabutte, Carabosse, Lilac Fairy, and
Princess Aurora
Rachele Buriassi (June 1 at 8 p.m. and June 5 at 2 p.m.)
Anna Ishii (June 2 at 8 p.m. and June 4 at 2 p.m.)
Yui Sugawara (June 3 and 4 at 8 p.m.)
Prince of the North
James Lyttle
Prince of the West
José Losada
Prince of the East
Graeme Fuhrman
Prince of the South
Hamilton Nieh (June 1, 4 at 8 p.m. and June 5 at 2 p.m.)
Felixovich (June 2 at 8 p.m. and June 4 at 2 p.m.)
Aurora's Friends
Catherine Toupin, Kiara Flavin, Alexandra Eccles, Kiara Felder
Waltz of the Flowers
Rose Trahan, Gabrielle Chenard, Tuesday Leduc, Maude Fleury, Carrigan MacDonald, Camilla Agraso, Sarah-Maude Laliberté, Tatiana Lerebours, Quentin Nabor, Étienne Delorme, Antoine Bertran, Théodore Poubeau, Santiago Merchant, Juan Sebastian Hoyos Correra, Angel Vizcaino, François Gagné
Waltz Girls
Heloísa Silveira Portell, Elisabeth Gallagher, Sofia Chiosa Faguy, Juliette Bernard (June 1, 3, 4 at 8 p.m. and June 5 juin at 2 p.m. )
Laure Menu, Nahla Desrosiers, Maïté Ribeiro, Yihan Athena Chen (June 2 juin at 8 p.m. and June 4 at 2 p.m.)
Waltz Boys
Elias Shanski, Caleb St-Jean, Milan Rochon, Roméo Gault
Lackeys
Thalie Turene, Sunny Chen (June 1, 3, 4 at 8 p.m. and June 5 at 2 p.m.)
Princesse-Rose Gonzalesz, Héloïse Pilon (June at 8 p.m. and June 4 juin at 2 p.m.)
Princess Aurora, Carabosse, Lilac Fairy, and
Prince Désiré
Esnel Ramos (June 1, 2, 4 at 8 p.m. and June 5 at 2 p.m.)
Roddy Doble (June 3 at 8 p.m. and June 4 at 2 p.m.)
The Countess
Tetyana Martyanova (June 1 and June 4 at 8 p.m.)
Anya Nesvitaylo (June 2, 3 at 8 p.m. and June 4, 5 at 2 p.m.)
Hunting Women
Maude Fleury, Éline Malègue, Rose Trahan, Tatiana Lerebours, Anya Nesvitaylo (June 1 and 4 at 8 p.m.), Tetyana Martyanova (June 2, 3 at 8 p.m. and June 4, 5 at 2 p.m.)
Hunting Men
Angel Vizcaino, Théodore Poubeau, Quentin Nabor, Antoine Bertran, Stephen Sattterffield, Graeme Furhman, James Little
Nymphs
Kiara Felder, Carrigan MacDonald, Kiara Flavin, Maude Fleury, Camilla Agraso, Éline Malègue, Sarah-Maude Laliberté, Elodie Scholtes-Labrec, Catherine Toupin, Alexandra Eccles, Rose Trahan, Gabrielle Chenard, Tatiana Lerebour, Mikaela Mili, Anya Nesvitayl, Claudia Colonna
Carabosse's Monsters
François Gagné, Théodore Poubeau, Étienne Delorme, Santiago Merchant, Juan Sebastian Hoyos, Quentin Nabor, Antoine Bertran
King Florestan, The Queen, Cantalabutte, Carabosse, Lilac Fairy, Princess Aurora, Prince Désiré, Prince of the North, Prince of the West, Prince of the East, Prince of the South, and
Ali Baba
Felixovich Morante (June 1, 3, 4 at 8 p.m and June 5)
André Santos (June 2 and June 4 at 2p.m)
Diamond Fairy
Vanesa G.R. Montoya (June 1, 3, 4 at 8 p.m. and June 5 at 2 p.m.)
Anya Nesvitaylo (June 2 at 8 p.m. and June 4 at 2 p.m.)
Gemstones
Maude Sabourin (June 1, 2 at 8 p.m. and June 4 at 2.pm)
Éline Malègue (June 2 and 3 at 8 p.m. and June 4 and 5 at 2 p.m.)
Tetyana Martyanova
Anya Nesvitaylo (June 1, 3, 4 at 8 p.m. and June 5 at 2 p.m.)
Puss-in-Boots
Stephen Satterfield
The White Cat
Kiara Felder (June 1, 2 at 8 p.m. and June 4)
Carrigan MacDonald (3 at 8 p.m. and June 5 at 2 p.m.)
Bluebird
André Santos (June 1 and 4 at 8 p.m.)
Angel Vizcaino (June 2, 3 at 8 p.m. and June 4, 5 at 2 p.m.)
Princess Florine
Anna Ishii (June 1 and 4 at 8 p.m.)
Mai Kono (June 2, 3 at 8 p.m. and June 4, 5 at 2 p.m.)
Little Red Riding Hood
Tatiana Lerebours (June 1,2 and 4)
Catherine Toupin (June 3, 5)
The gray wolf
Étienne Delorme
Lackeys
Thalie Turene, Sunny Chen, Princesse-Rose Gonzalez, Héloïse Pilon
Snow White
Claudia Colonna
The Seven Dwarves
Elias Shanski, Nahla Desrosiers, Milan Rochon, Caleb St-Jean, Juliette Bernard, Roméo Gault, Yihan Athena Chen
Beauty
Alexandra Eccles
The Beast
Santiago Merchant
Colombine
Catherine Toupin (June 1 and 4 at 8 p.m.)
Rose Trahan (June 2, 3 at 8 p.m. and June 4, 5 at 2 p.m.)
Harlequin
Angel Vizcaino (June 1 at 8 p.m. and June 4 at 2 p.m.)
André Santos (June 2, 3, 4 at 8 p.m. and June 5 at 2 p.m.)
Gretel
Tuesday Leduc
Hansel
Juan Sebastian Hoyos
Rapunzel
Sarah-Maude Laliberté (June 1, 2 and 4)
Elodie Scholtes-Labrec (June 3 and 5)
Rapunzel's Prince
Antoine Bertran
Bluebeard's wife
Kiara Flavin
Bluebeard
Quentin Nabor
Sheherazade
Maude Fleury (June 1, 2 and 4)
Tatiana Lerebours (June 3 and 5)
Aladdin
Théodore Poubeau
Cinderella
Carrigan MacDonald (June 1 and 4 at 8 p.m.)
Camilla Agraso (June 2, 3 at 8 p.m and June 4, 5 at 2 p.m.)
Cinderella's Prince
François Gagné
The Frog Princess
Mikaela Milic
The Frog Princess' Husband
Giuseppe Canale
FIRST VIOLINS
Veronica Thomas, violon solo
Valérie Belzile, associate
Pascale Frenette
Jean Ai Seow
Soo Gyeong Lee
Heather Schnarr
Robert Margarian
Yu Bin Kim
Daphnée Sincenne-Richard
Isaac Jobin
SECOND VIOLINS
Van Arménian, solo
Frédéric Lefebvre, assistant
Anne Saint-Cyr
Line Deneault
Édith Pedneault
Julien Patrice
Richard Zheng
Carl Beaudoin
VIOLAS
Bojana Milinov, solo
Benjamin Rota, assistant
Mihaela Tistu
Marie-Lise Ouellet
ChungHan Hsiao
Onyou Lee
CELLOS
Catherine Perron, solo
Annie Gadbois, assistant
Laurence Leclerc
Marc Labranche
Élisabeth Dubé
Marie-Michel Beauparlant
DOUBLE BASSES
Marc Denis, solo
Denis Chabot, assistant
Pierre Pépin
Anaïs Vigeant
FLUTES Myriam Genest-Denis, solo Geneviève Déraspe Noémie Caron-Marcotte, picc
OBOES
Kirsten Zander, solo
David Jomphe
Josée Marchand, ca
CLARINETS
Zaven Zakarian, solo
François Martel
BASSOONS
Lise Millet, solo
Carmelle Préfontaine
HORNS
Jocelyn Veilleux, solo
Maude Lussier
Laurence Latreille-Gagné
Guillaume Roy
CORNETS
Benjamin Raymond, solo
Aura West
TRUMPETS
Tazmyn Eddy, solo
Pascal Leprohon
TROMBONES
Martin Ringuette, solo
Angelo Munoz
Alexandre Gagnier, trombone basse
TUBA
Scott Cheyne, solo
TIMPANI
François St-Jean, solo
PERCUSSIONS
Bob Slapcoff, solo
Anne-Julie Caron
Vincent Séguin
HARP
Éveline Grégoire Rosseau, solo
PIANO
Éveline Grégoire Rosseau, solo
PERSONNEL MANAGER
Richard Capolla
Artistic Director: Ivan Cavallari
Executive Director: Marc Lalonde
President Emeritus: Constance V. Pathy, C.M., C.Q., DMus.
Founder: Ludmilla Chiriaeff
Artistic Director Emeritus: Gradimir Pankov
Production Director: Stéphan Pépin
Technical Directors: Simon Beetschen
Stage Manager and Technical and Production Coordinator: Gabrielle Lemoine-Brin
Resident Lighting Designer: Marc Parent
Resident Sound Designer and Sound Engineer: Raymond Soly
Head Stage Carpenter: Kenneth Gregg
Head of Accessories: Pierre Berthiaume
Head Lighting Technician: Patrick Carrière
Assistant to Head Lighting Technician: Dominic Drouin
Head of Sound: Aidan MacCormack
Head of Video: Roberto D’Avanzo
Head of Costumes: Denise Morin
Dance teacher for the children: Dianela Dupotey
Extra dancers Coordinator: Justine Brousseau
Head of Wardrobe: Mélanie Ferrero
Assistant to Head of Wardrobe: Louisanne Lamarre
Costumes Project Account Manager: Marie-Hélène Gravel
Clerks, Wardrobe: Christelle Deforceville
Senior Advisor, Wardrobe: Mireille Tremblay
Costumes Buyer : Julie Pelletier
Principal Cutter: Caroline Boisvert
First Assistant Cutter: Kéli Alexandre
Assistant Cutter: Michèle Gagné
Sewers: Anabel Caron, Emilie Tremblay-Lévesque, Cecilia Meza, Silvana Fernandez, Pamela Masseport, Natalie Talbot, Francine Viens, Steve Fortin, Catherine Brodeur, Isabelle St-Gelais
Dye and Textile Artists: Valérie Delacroix, Katherine Paré
External Cutter : Mathieu Audy
Technicians and dressers, IATSE Members, local 56 and 863
With Les Grands Ballets Orchestra
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