Tchaikovsky's 'Sleeping Beauty'

Pytor Ilyich Tchaikovsky wrote numerous musical compositions during his lifetime, but his works for ballet truly connected all of the fine arts. The Sleeping Beauty, op. 66 was composed in 1889 and premiered in St. Petersburg, Russia on January 15th, 1890. During this time in history, Russia was seeking to solidify itself as a major world power which included establishing itself in the fine arts. Tchaikovsky’s composition was met with both praise and criticism upon its release. “Ironically, given that Sleeping Beauty came to be regarded as the quintessence of late nineteenth-century Russian ballet, a number of the ballet’s first critics were certain that Sleeping Beauty marked the decline of the art form.” The composer took risks with his second

“Sleeping Beauty” was a gruesome story, nothing compared to the Disney movie. The original tale was published in 1634 and it was very unpleasant. Giambattista Basile wrote the original Sleeping Beauty story. In Basile’s story, sleeping beauty has twins, gets raped, and almost gets killed. In the original tale, the king, who is already

Ballet has been an art form since the late fifteenth century, but society did not truly see the impact of ballet until the nineteenth century. Modern day thinkers

While observing this dance ballet, there were many things that caught my attention. First, the theater itself was extremely large, and the stage itself was big, and the dancers had plenty of room to move across the stage and perform their routines. There were many dancers, and they all played various roles that ranged from Clara, Fritz, Herr Drosselmeyer, the Rat King, the Nutcracker, the Sugar Plum Fairy and her Cavalier, and many more. All of the performers wore vivid costumes

But both stories go beyond the simple idea of true loves power, and turn into something more sinister by having Talia and Aurora expected to succumb to the sinister affections of the King and Maleficent. In Basile’s story a king abuses Talia's vulnerable state, and unapologetically rapes her. “He lifted her in his arms, and carried her to a bed, where he gathered the first fruits of love” (Hallet & Karasek, 2009, p. 68). The passive way in which the author brings up the rape is clearly a product of the time it was written. The king’s ‘love’ for Talia is seen as a noble act. In the end, Talia’s own struggles are used as an anecdote for the king’s heroism. Aurora, in Maleficent, also has a male love interest but the movie’s modern retelling has their love tossed away as a simple fling. In the end, it is Maleficent true love that wakes Aurora. The creators of Maleficent clearly thought it would be revolutionary to have Aurora not fall in love with Prince Philip. Women being subservient to men, and desperate for their affections, is often critiqued by feminist, which is why Maleficent attempts to go against this trope. Basically it takes the role of the prince and swaps it for Maleficent without offering anything new. In each narrative Talia and Aurora are the stereotypical damsel, who falls victim to Stockholm like tendencies.

Listening to Music class has taught me a new way to listen and enjoy music. I have learned how to differentiate the melodies, rhythms, and instruments in a song. It has also introduced me to different genres in the music world, aside from what is usually played on the radio. I can now attend any concert, listen to any genre, or watch any ballet and easily recognize the many specific aspects the music being played has. Ballets are very interesting to me. The audience is able to enjoy the music being played as it is telling a story, and being acted out through the performer’s body language. In the two ballets, The Rite of Spring and The Nutcracker, a great story is told in both referencing the many great dynamics music has. These two specific ballets are written by different composers, and each one of them have certain conditions they were written under. As well as different receptions, popularity, and development. The Rite of Spring and The Nutcracker’s differences has made some sort of an impact in the performing world back then as well as now.

After Sleeping beauty pricks her finger and falls into the deep sleep, the struggle is then on to revive her. The prolonged period of time that varies between the stories depends on the hero, whom overcomes the evil villain with the help of the good fairies. The penultimate sequence in which the hero defeats the villain transformed into the dragon, to me resembles the legend of Saint George and the Dragon. The prince then finds the princess and gives her the kiss of life and she is awoken. He then returns with the princess and gets recognised as a hero when they get married. However this is not the end in the Charles Perrault version as the prince’s mother is not happy with the marriage, and tries to eat the princess and the newly married couples children, eventually she throws herself into a vat of vipers and dies.

Classical Ballet is the epitome of class and sophistication, it is known for its meticulous techniques

As world has changed over the last century or so, the ballet world has been changing with it. There are many people who have helped shape that change. The changes in style were mainly influenced by George Balanchine. George Balanchine, a Russian choreographer and ballet dancer, also known as the father of American ballet, was the man who was said to have changed the style of ballet forever. Along with these changes in style came changes in visual design elements, inspirational figures, and changes in what the ballets themselves tend to rely on. Many of the features given to ballet in Russia in the 15th and 16th century still remain to this day, but many features have been altered to fit . Let’s take a closer look at what features truly

'It seems to me, my dear friend, that the music of this ballet will be one of my best creations. The subject is so poetic, so grateful for music, that 1 have worked on it with enthusiasm and written it with the warmth and enthusiasm upon which the worth of a composition always depends." - Tchaikovsky, to Nadia von Meck.

The melody sounds somber and serious and the energy of the dancers suddenly changes. A spoken word takes place and all of the dancer begin to tell their stories of pain and struggle through movements. The spoken word talks about the journey of men and women who overcame social injustice. In the dancer's movements you could clearly see how they correlated together. Movements were powerful and restraint at the same time giving the audience the idea of the women were pushing through something that was bearing them down. There was a lot of expansion in the chest, back, and arms followed by contractions in the body. As soon as the spoken word was finished the mood of the piece change again and the pianist began to play a upbeat tune that brought the dancers back in to a more positive and high spirit. A lot of polyrhythms take place as the dancers jump high and move their arms back and forth moving throughout the space. This happens in unison at first and then solos, trios, and duets happen in this section of the dance. The expression on their faces add charismatic charm to this piece. Their expressions continue to move them into different emotions and feelings that are relatable to everyday

Children 's stories have been around for some eras. They have been read to kids everywhere throughout the world in view of how they can identify with youngsters regardless of what society they originate from. One of the even more surely understood children 's stories is 'Sleeping Beauty '. The most generally known form today is the Disney motion picture, made in 1959. This film depended on the Grimm 's variant of Sleeping Beauty called 'Little Brier-Rose’, which was composed in 1812 in Germany. Another less known rendition of Sleeping Beauty is 'Sun, Moon and Talia’, which was composed in 1634 Italy by Giambattista Basile. The primary parts are a princess reviled to a profound rest until an aristocrat wakes her with a kiss. The characters in the stories may have numerous distinctions however; the key qualities that are perceived in Sleeping Beauty characters are still evident.

"The Nutcracker ballet is a timeless tale that brings wonder and magic to audiences of all ages and helps fulfill

I became a ballet student at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts in 2014. Being a high school student here gave me the opportunity to expand my horizons and take in as much art as I possibly could. During my first fall at UNCSA, I attended the Emerging Choreographers performance and was privileged to see works created by fourth year contemporary majors. These stunning works showed me the possibilities that dance holds to truly convey powerful and meaning messages. One work in particular stood out to me. It was a piece that showcased five dancers all dressed in pedestrian clothing. At first it appeared to be a casual street scene but a the music progressed one girl began making incredible sharp movements as if she was possessed. She made tiny movements of her hands and feet all the while moving a great distance across the stage. The others started going off what she was doing and all moved together as one giant body supporting the girl in the middle. She continued dancing in the most amazing way have many small movements combined with huge movements that made her seem a thousand feet tall. Intrigued I spoke to one of the dancers about the intention of the dance. She told me that the

I agree, Vipa. This is an astonishing ballet that just keeps revealing more and more every time one sees it. It's so rich in texture and emotion. I couldn't help but notice the utter differences in both the Gomes work and the "new" Ratmansky with the Balanchine. While both of the newer pieces are clumsy and cluttered, the Balanchine seemed fresh and totally in the present. Unadorned; only ravishing movement. No choreographer living and working today can come up to Mr. B's standard. No one can reveal what dance can and should be. No one can really move us beyond the superficial that is presented so much to us these days. Dance over... bye, bye. But with Balanchine it stays burned in the memory and continues to speak to us even after