The Sleeping Beauty Suite

Tchaikovsky’s Sleeping Beauty is music from the Golden Age of ballet—evocative, propulsive and filled with glorious melodies. The ballet was written in 1889, to fill a commission from the Imperial Ballet (now Mariinsky) in St. Petersburg. The scenario was created by choreographer Marius Petipa, based on versions of the legend by Charles Perrault and the Brothers Grimm. The five-movement concert suite was assembled anonymously after Tchaikovsky’s death. It includes the most famous dances, but not in the order they appear in the ballet. The sinister opening presents the evil fairy Carabosse, and in the following lyrical melody the benevolent Lilac Fairy. The second movement is the “Rose Adagio”, in which the Princess dances with four suitors, each with a rose. Movement Three, “Pas de caractère”, is a playful depiction of Puss in Boots, who appears as a guest at the wedding. “Panorama” accompanies the Lilac Fairy as she guides the Prince to the forgotten, overgrown castle where the Princess sleeps. The suite ends with the stirring “Sleeping Beauty Waltz”, danced by the Princess to celebrate her 16th birthday.