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Pas de Quatre


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In my previous thread I asked about the Fairy Pas de Quatre in the final act. I have some arguments about why there shouldn't be a pas de quatre and what could happen instead:

1. Why do we get a new set of fairies? Why not keep the old ones?

2. Why wouldn't the Lilac Fairy go to her own granddaughter's wedding?

3. If she does go, where are the other fairies? They are her godmothers too.

4. I think the Cinderella and Prince Fortune music should be used as a Pas de Six for the fairies and the Gold Fairy variation to be used for a variation for the Lilac fairy.

5. Some arguments against the Florestan Pas de Trois are why aren't they in act I? Well that's true... but I think they should be put into act I. Maybe with the music for the Entree of the Grand Pas de Deux as it isn't used anymore.

What do you guys think?

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1. The new fairies are blessing a marriage, not a christening.

2. Lilac does attend the wedding, at least at the Kirov.

3. I don't know :wallbash:

4. The Kirov does use the Golden Fairy music as a variation for Lilac in Act III...the key change is kind of weird, the variation just comes out of nowhere.

5. The entrance for the grand pas de deux is used by the Kirov. The Fairies of the Precious Stones and Metals dance with two pages and four cavaliers before the adagio.

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3. In the original choreographic instructions, the Prologue Fairies ARE there. Some even enter in carriages, with an entourage. Even Carabosse, invited this time, shows up. They seem to have substituted a veteran female character dancer/actress for Cecchetti, who was otherwise engaged for Act III as the Bluebird, but Carabosse is now an Eumenid, a "gentled one", because she has been afforded her proper respect. She and her rats and frogs were supposed to have presented a much more genteel appearance in this act.

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indeed in the vikharev 'reconsruction' of the imperial ballet's petipa staging, all the fairy godmothers are included in the cortege that opens act 3, some as you note in carriages and sedan-chair thrones. they all end up posed and grouped within the banks of clouds during the apotheosis.

balanchine's personal childhood memories of being a cupid in SLEEPING BEAUTY probably refers to one of the child attendants in the cortege. in fact, in the vsevolozhsky-based design scheme of the vikharev prod. the fairy of song arrives in a gilded cage attended by child-dancer/cupids.

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Hans, I know some versions use the Golden Fairy variation in the second for Aurora act but I mean they should use the music for a variation in the third act as the Lilac's variation as that variation doesn't musically make much sense in act II.

Mel, okay fair enough that it used to be like that but I am mainly talking about what it is now and what it could be in the future with changes that could make more sense to the ballet.

Also, Hans, how can we tell that they are only marriage fairies?

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Mel, okay fair enough that it used to be like that but I am mainly talking about what it is now and what it could be in the future with changes that could make more sense to the ballet.

Also, Hans, how can we tell that they are only marriage fairies?

Make sure that you have enough dancers to dance the Prologue fairies and not have to recycle them for other roles in the Wedding scene.

I'm not Hans, but I know the answer. In 1890 Petersburg, it was fashionable to make an engagement ring of sapphires set in silver. The wedding ring was diamond set in gold. If you'll notice, the Diamond Fairy has pride of place, dancing the last variation.

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Hans, I know some versions use the Golden Fairy variation in the second for Aurora act but I mean they should use the music for a variation in the third act as the Lilac's variation as that variation doesn't musically make much sense in act II.

You may wish to re-read my original post, in which I stated that the Kirov uses the Golden Fairy's variation in Act III as a variation for the Lilac Fairy.

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All versions I've seen the Lilac Fairy was at the wedding, sometimes she dances and sometimes she doesn't. I prefer there to be four Jewels/Metals for the pas de quatre. Sometime they're fairies and sometimes they're courtiers.

As for why it isn't the same fairies from the Prologue, it's simple. This ballet requires a large cast, so most likely the dancers who were fairies have to be something else. Also the fairies where at the christening because they were becoming the baby's godmothers, whereas at the wedding, the Jewel fairies are there to wish wealth and prosperity upon the happy couple.

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