The world-renowned Bolshoi Ballet brings a popular 300-year-old fairytale, Sleeping Beauty, to life on the Moscow Stage.
And, while the audience thrills to a performance in Russia, Salmon Arm residents will have access to the ballet on the SalmarClassic’s big screen on Sunday, Jan. 22.
The ballet is based on the story written by Charles Perrault in 1697, with Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s musical score that wascompleted in 1889.
The work has become one of the most famous ballets and tells a story of the power of love over hate. In the palace of KingFlorestan XIV, the christening of his daughter, Princess Aurora, is being celebrated.
Master of Ceremonies Catalabutte is checking the invitation list. The Lilac Fairy and Good Fairies appear among the courtiersand the guests coming to congratulate the princess.
The evil and powerful Carabosse Fairy arrives at the ballroom in a foul mood, having been left off the guest list.
She predicts Aurora will die young from pricking her finger with a knitting spindle.
But the Lilac Fairy intervenes: she predicts the forces of good will neutralize the sinister spell.
The ballet picks up the story when the evil princess returns to Aurora’s 16th birthday celebration, disguised as an old womanwith a knitting spindle. Trustful Aurora takes the spindle and continues to dance. Suddenly, she stops dancing and looks withhorror at her finger which she has accidentally pricked with the spindle.
Aurora is not dead, she has fallen asleep, awakened later by a passionate kiss.
The three-hour ballet begins at 1 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are available at the Salmar Grand.