Moldovan Ballet's Sleeping Beauty in Altea

THE INTERNATIONAL Ballet Company, Moldova is bringing its production of Tchaikovsky’s Sleeping Beauty to the Palau Altea stage on Sunday (May 1) at 18.00.

The company was founded by the acclaimed Moldovan soloists Cristina and Alexei Terentiev, and boasts in its cast dancers from Moldova, Italy and other countries. The venue website notes that ‘the work and effort’ put in by the Terentievs over a long period of time have culminated in a company where a ‘refined technique and an excellent dramatic interpretation bring to life the best known choreographies and scores in classical ballet’.

In the story, King Florestan XXIV and his Queen asked all the fairies invited to the baptism of their daughter, Princess Aurora to be godmothers. As they arrive with gifts for the baby, they are interrupted by the presence of Carabosse, the wicked fairy.

Carabosse is angry at not being invited and gives Aurora a spindle, announcing that one day the princess will prick a finger with it and die. The Lilac Fairy, who still has to offer her gift, promises that Aurora will not die, but fall into a deep sleep from which she is awakened by the kiss of a prince. On her 16th birthday the unthinkable happens and Aurora pricks her finger.

One hundred years later, Prince Florimund is hunting in the woods with members of his court. They see a deer followed by The Lilac Fairy who gives him a glimpse of Princess Aurora. Florimund implores her to take him to the place where she is sleeping. At the gates of the hidden castle they meet Carabosse, who is seen off by the Lilac Fairy and the prince. Florimund wakes the Princess Aurora with a kiss: the spell breaks and Carabosse is finally defeated.

General admission is €31 and tickets are available online through the venue website at https://palaualtea.es/