Good versus Evil, a beautiful Princess, a fearless Prince, fairies, roses and incredible dancing… What more could you ask for?
Gem City Ballet (GCB), Dayton’s premiere pre-professional ballet company, will bring all this and more to the Victoria Theater on March 6th and 7th in The Sleeping Beauty, a full length classical ballet.
With gorgeous costumes, an imaginative set designed and built by GCB Production Stage Manager David Shough and painted by Master Scenic Designer Chris Harmon, and, of course, brilliant dancing by the talented young members of Gem City Ballet, this promises to be a fantastic weekend of dance. Topping it off are Kristi Capps, principal ballerina of the Cincinnati Ballet, and her real life fiancé Dmitri Trubchanov of Colorado Ballet, performing the leading roles of Princess Aurora and Prince Desiree.
The beloved fairy tale opens with the christening of the baby Aurora. Six fairies offer the gifts of beauty, energy, grace, song, precision and wisdom. Then the evil fairy Carabosse, angry at not being invited to the celebration, offers a curse: on her sixteenth birthday, Aurora will prick her finger on a spindle and die. The Lilac Fairy, the most powerful fairy in the world, offers hope, promising that Aurora will not die, but will sleep until awakened by the kiss of a handsome prince.
Aurora’s sixteenth birthday arrives, and the Princess tests the devotion of four suitors in the virtuosic and famous “Rose Adagio.” Then tragedy strikes as Carabosse tricks Aurora into pricking her finger, and she collapses. The Lilac Fairy is true to her word, though, and Aurora only sleeps, as the castle is engulfed in vines to protect her until her Prince appears.
One hundred years later, Prince Desiree comes to the forest and the Lilac Fairy shows him a vision of the beautiful Aurora. Determined to find her, Desiree battles the evil Carabosse, discovers the hidden castle, ascends the staircase and, with a kiss, brings Aurora back to life.
Aurora’s wedding is attended by many of the fairy tale characters from long ago, Puss ‘n Boots and the White Cat, Princess Florine and the Blue Bird, Red Riding Hood and the Wolf, and Cinderella and her Prince. Capps and Trubchanov end the evening with a stately and loving pas de deux, a special dance for the wedding couple.
There will be two chances for you to see The Sleeping Beauty. On Saturday night, March 6, the evening gala performance at 8 p.m. will be an especially festive night as GCB premieres this fantastic ballet. The Sunday, March 7, afternoon matinee at 2 p.m. will be family-friendly with reduced children’s tickets and a chance to meet the Act Three wedding characters in the lobby of the Victoria following the performance. Bring the entire family; it will be a magical weekend! Tickets are available at Ticket Center Stage at (937) 228-3630 or ticketcenterstage.com and from Gem City Ballet at (937) 222-6880.
Also, be sure not to miss the Sleeping Beauty Birthday Bash, a family fundraising party, on February 27th at the Dayton Women’s Club. AND if parents call the studio to order tickets by February 18th, they will pay $30 per child and only $20 per adult (for Birthday Bash). Call Gem City Ballet for more details.
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