OVERVIEW
Choreography: Ben Stevenson O.B.E.
Music: Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
This production contains the use of theatrical explosions, pyrotechnics and low-lying fog in the Prologue and Act II.
The Sleeping Beauty marked a pivotal moment in the career of Artistic Director Emeritus Ben Stevenson O.B.E, premiering in 1967 in London. Recognized as a supreme achievement of classical ballet, this exquisite production of the French fairytale was first staged in 1978 and subsequently revamped in 1990 to grace the grand stage of the Wortham Theater Center. Stevenson’s rendition unfolds the timeless tale of the beautiful princess, Aurora, cursed by the malevolent fairy, Carabosse. In a gripping narrative of good versus evil, the Lilac Fairy bestows upon Aurora the gift of sleeping for a hundred years, to awaken only with true love’s kiss. Set and costume designer Desmond Heeley adorns the stage with opulent sets and dazzling attire.
SYNOPSIS
MAIN CHARACTERS
Princess Aurora
Prince Florimund
Carabosse
The Lilac Fairy
*CONTAINS STORY SPOILERS
PROLOGUE
The court of King Florestan is celebrating the christening of Princess Aurora. The courtiers are assembled around her cradle as the festivities begin. The king and queen enter, followed by six fairies and their cavaliers. Each fairy dances, offering her special gift to the infant princess. Suddenly, before the Lilac Fairy can present her gift, the wicked Fairy Carabosse interrupts the ceremony. Angry because she has not been invited, Carabosse delivers a curse upon the tiny princess: she will grow up to be beautiful, but one day will prick her finger and die. The Lilac Fairy intervenes, promising that the princess will but sleep until awakened by a prince's kiss.
INTERMISSION
ACT I
It is Aurora's sixteenth birthday party. Her father informs her that she must select one of four visiting princes as her husband. Aurora dances with the princes, each of whom offers her a rose and declares his love. As the celebration continues, the disguised Carabosse hands Aurora a bouquet in which a spindle is concealed. Aurora pricks her finger, and as she falls, the Lilac Fairy appears and casts her spell, putting the entire court to sleep.
INTERMISSION
ACT II
One hundred years have passed. Prince Florimund and his hunting party stop beside a lake. As the hunt moves on the prince is left alone. To his amazement, the Lilac Fairy appears and conjures a vision of Princess Aurora. Enchanted by the vision, Prince Florimund begs the Lilac Fairy to lead him to Aurora. A boat takes them to the castle, where they are confronted by Carabosse, who turns herself into a monster. With help from the Lilac Fairy, the prince overpowers Carabosse. Once inside the castle, Prince Florimund discovers the sleeping Aurora and awakens her with a kiss.
INTERMISSION
ACT III
The court is celebrating the wedding of Princess Aurora and Prince Florimund. Characters from other fairy tales have joined the celebration. After Aurora and Florimund's grand pas de deux, the occasion ends as the entire court joins in the finale.
ARTISTS
Ben Stevenson O.B.E.
CHOREOGRAPHER, THE SLEEPING BEAUTY
Ben Stevenson, a native of Portsmouth, England, received his dance training at the Arts and Educational School in London. He appeared with the Royal Ballet and English National Ballet where, as a principal dancer, he performed lead roles in all the classics. He has received numerous awards for his choreography, including three gold medals at the International Ballet Competitions. For his contributions to international dance, Mr. Stevenson was named an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (O.B.E.) by Queen Elizabeth II in December 1999. In April 2000, he was presented with the Dance Magazine Award. In 2018, Mr. Stevenson was acknowledged by the Chinese government as one of the most influential Foreign Experts in the past 40 years since China initiated its policy on Reform and Opening Up. Mr. Stevenson assumed the artistic directorship of Texas Ballet Theater in July 2003. In 2022, Mr. Stevenson was named Artistic Director Laureate in recognition of his lengthy tenure. Previously he served as artistic director of Houston Ballet (1976-2003), elevating the company from a regional troupe to an internationally acclaimed ensemble.
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)
COMPOSER, THE SLEEPING BEAUTY
Tchaikovsky was a leading Russian composer of the late 19th century, whose works are notable for their melodic inspiration and their orchestration. He is regarded as the master composer for classical ballet, as demonstrated by his scores for Swan Lake, The Nutcracker, and Sleeping Beauty. Among the most subjective of composers, Tchaikovsky is inseparable from his music. He was a passionate ballet lover and considered the Sleeping Beauty ballet score his best work at a time when ballet scores were neglected due to limitations dictated by ballet masters. Ivan Vsevolozhsky, the Director of Imperial Theaters had approached Tchaikovsky with an idea of a ballet based on Perrault’s fairy tale. Tchaikovsky would closely collaborate with Mariinsky’s French ballet master Marius Petipa. He finished most of the composing in only 40 days. In this Sleeping Beauty, he would bring new life, complexity and rhythmic vitality to the clichés of ballet music, reimagining them with his boundless gift for melody and the techniques of symphonic music. After Sleeping Beauty, composers began to take ballet scores more seriously. This would inspire other composers like Stravinsky, Ravel, Prokofiev and Bartók to create their ballet scores.
HISTORY
THE SLEEPING BEAUTY REPERTOIRE HISTORY
This will be Houston Ballet’s 12th time performing Ben Stevenson’s The Sleeping Beauty. The excerpts have been performed often at Miller Outdoor Theatre and the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion in The Woodlands, Texas and on tours. The pas de deux has been featured multiple times in the Margaret Alkek Williams Jubilee of Dance programs. The Sleeping Beauty with the costume and scenic designs by Desmond Heeley is Houston Ballet’s second and current staging since its premiere in 1990. This staging was designed for Houston’s Wortham Theater Center. When Stevenson was Houston Ballet’s Artistic Director in 1976, he debuted the Houston premiere with the costume and scenic designs by Peter Farmer in 1978 at Jones Hall for the Performing Arts. In 1967, Stevenson launched his career as a choreographer when he staged his first production of The Sleeping Beauty for the English National Ballet and starred Dame Margot Fonteyn as Aurora. In 1971, during his time as co-artistic director of The Washington Ballet alongside designer Fredric Franklin, Stevenson restaged The Sleeping Beauty for the company’s opening performance at The Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. In 1976, before becoming artistic director of Houston Ballet, Stevenson briefly served as a resident choreographer and artistic advisor for Ballet International, a London-based classical touring company. It was with Ballet International that he did his third staging before the Houston Ballet premiere in 1978.
THE SLEEPING BEAUTY PRODUCTION DETAILS
CHOREOGRAPHER: Ben Stevenson O.B.E. after Marius Petipa
GENRE: Classical Ballet
RUN TIME: Ballet with Prologue and 3 Acts; approximately 2 hours and 49 minutes with three 15-minute intermissions
LOCATION: Brown Theater at the Wortham Theater Center in Houston, Texas
COMPOSER: Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
SCORE: The Sleeping Beauty
ORIGINAL PREMIERE DATE: January 16, 1890 by the Imperial Ballet renamed Mariinsky Ballet at the Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg, Russia.
HOUSTON BALLET PREMIERE DATE: September 28, 1978 at Jones Hall for the Performing Arts in Houston, Texas. Costume and Scenic Design by Peter Farmer.
HOUSTON BALLET WORTHAM PREMIERE: May 24, 1990 in the Brown Theater at the Wortham Theater Center in Houston, Texas. Costume and Scenic Design by Desmond Heeley.
COSTUME & SCENIC DESIGN: Desmond Heeley
ORIGINAL LIGHTING DESIGN: Duane Schuler
LIGHTING DESIGN RE-CREATED: Lisa J. Pinkham
BALLET MASTERS (2025): Ian Casady, Amy Fote, Hayden Stark, Steven Woodgate
HOUSTON BALLET ORCHESTRA CONDUCTORS (2025): Ermanno Florio, Garrett Keast
HOUSTON BALLET STAGE MANAGER (2025): Eli Walker
SPECIAL PROGRAM NOTES (2025): Ermanno Florio, Houston Ballet’s former Music Director and Principal Conductor returns as a guest conductor. Garrett Keast is a guest conductor for Houston Ballet’s The Sleeping Beauty.
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