Does the world need another Sleeping Beauty? After all, the popular Disney cartoon of 1959 has been released four times. Then, the evil fairy Maleficent’s side of the story was released on film in 2014.
And now comes a new production from Pacific Northwest Ballet (PNB). A hundred and eighty-four dancers arrive on stage in the largest production PNB has ever done.
Is it worth it for a family to expose their children to this ballet, which cost $4.35 million to create?
Absolutely. It is, quite simply, a world of spectacular magic.
A dream production
PNB assembled a dream team to create this world. Seattle artist Preston Singletary, best known for his use of glass to explore the myths and symbols of local Indigenous people, designed the set. Costume Designer Paul Tazewell was also the designer for the new “Wicked” film. Tony Award-winner Wendall K. Harrington’s projections deepen the story onstage. The list goes on.
PNB’s “The Sleeping Beauty” ballet in Seattle honors the Northwest and its First People while remaining true to the original Marius Petipa choreography of 1890. It’s a story ballet that combines dance and mime. Mime tells the story, and dance adds the spice.
The story
The plot encompasses three gatherings of the Papillion family: the celebration of a new baby, a birthday party twenty years later, and finally, a wedding to beat all weddings.
The production begins with projections of the Tlingit myth of the Eagle and Raven, symbolizing the world’s need for balance (much like the two fairies in the ballet witness a world out of balance).
Following that, the ballet opens as Fairy Carabosse, a family relative, realizes she hasn’t received an invitation to the Papillion family party for new baby Aurora. Carabosse shows up anyway (with her mice). Tempers flare, and Carabosse lays a curse on the baby: Aurora will prick her finger on a spindle and die on her twentieth birthday.
In response, a second fairy, Fairy Lilac, gifts Aurora’s parents with a counter-magic. She promises that the curse will not cause death but a deep sleep, which a kiss of true love can lift.
Jump ahead twenty years and, sure enough, the birthday party ends badly. Like Raven, Carabosse is a shapeshifter. She looks like a simple knitter as she tempts Aurora with a sharp spindle. The finger is pricked, and Aurora and everyone at the party go to sleep.

Pacific Northwest Ballet company dancers with PNB School students. (Image: © Angela Sterling)
The sundial projected in the sky moves forward one hundred years, and along comes Prince Desire. The forest has changed since the birthday party. Fairy Lilac helps the prince find and deliver a kiss to wake the sleeping Aurora and the rest of the Papillion family. By the way, names are important in this ballet. Aurora means dawn or sunrise. Poor Carabosse is a French word for pimple. Papillion means butterfly, and sure enough, on stage, the kiss frees a million Monarch butterflies.
The only thing to top this great awakening is the final scene, which is a wedding. What a wedding it is, too. Just take a look at the guest list:
- Beauty and her Beast
- Cinderella & Prince Fortune
- Hansel & Gretel
- Snow White and the Evil With
- Four Fairies: Diamonds, Gold, Silver, Sapphires
- Puss in Boots & White Cat
- Blue Bird & Princess Florine
- Red Riding Hood & The Wolf
- Hop o’My Thumb, His Brothers & The Ogre (the funniest ogre you will ever meet)
- Everyone else in town
- And, of course, Carabosse and the rest of the Papillion Family
Bringing a child to the ballet
The task of accompanying a child to the ballet begins long before the curtain goes up. It is a formative event in a child’s life. There is the decision to go and the conversation about etiquette. Live ballet is not a movie; only you know if your child is ready to experience two-plus hours of performance with no talking — on the part of the people on stage or themselves. (It may help to know that many ballet experts suggest that children are ready to sit through a full ballet by age 7.) Picking an outfit as a ritual sets the more formal tone.
The lobby of McCaw Hall can be a wonderful experience. The crowd is excited. There are pictures of the dancers, costume displays, and glass art to see up close. Walking up the staircase is a chance to see the unusual chandelier made from all kinds of plastic toys and found pieces. It’s time to ask, “What do you see?”
No matter your child’s age, take a trip to the bathroom before the bell rings to call everyone into the theater hall. Pick up a booster seat for shorter kids, available at coat check.
Before the lights go down, remind your child that talking during the performance disturbs others, but you promise to answer their questions during intermission. If your child can read, encourage them to read the program so they know how far along in the story Act I will take them.

Pacific Northwest Ballet corps de ballet dancers Destiny Wimpye and Noah Martzall as White Cat and Puss in Boots. (Image: © Angela Sterling)
After the show
Don’t forget that bringing a child to a live performance is an experience forever remembered. It is not just the spectacle that is imprinted on them. It’s the excitement of being with a grownup in their life who loves them and enjoys their company. It’s the laughter on the way to and back; the stop for a treat and conversation after.
Here are a few questions after watching PNB’s “The Sleeping Beauty” ballet in Seattle:
- What did you like best?
- How were you able to figure out who was who? What gestures helped you understand the story?
- What Northwest shapes did you recognize? (They may have learned about the ovoid and trigon in school.)
- Why do you suppose some call dance a language?
This Sleeping Beauty will become part of PNB’s regular collection of story ballets and will undoubtedly be back every three or four years. Each return can be a chance to see the growth, development, and progress of the youth in your life and the value of the gift you have made possible.
Know before you go
- PNB’s “The Sleeping Beauty” ballet in Seattle is on stage through February 9.
- Tickets start at $49 and are available online at PNB.
- Students can get 50 percent off rush tickets with a valid ID, and teens ages 13 to 19 can get $5 day-of-show tickets through the TeenTix program.
- Age recommendation: 7 and up.