34 replies to this topic

[Mel Johnson]

It's Florestan XIV.  And for good thematic reasons.

[richard53dog]

MinkusPugni, on Jan 30 2006, 03:06 AM, said:

The King has always been Florestan the eighth or some other number and now that you mention it, only the Australian Ballet's version has the prince named Florimund. All the others I've seen I believe they've been Desire. Sorry for the confusion.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I think the nomenclature is more spotty than that. ABT shows Florimund in their archives, also on the telecast of the complete ballet in the late 70s, Florimund is used.

The Royal Ballet uses Florimund extensively, as far as I can remember, going back to the performances I saw in the 60s and 70s, the Prince was Florimund.
Also their two DVDs show Florimund.

Although I've not seen it yet, the Netherlands production uses Florimund on their DVD from a few years back.

So I guess it depends where you are and who put together the production.
(The POB seems to use Desiree, that may be because that was the name Nureyev
knew from the Kirov production)

But to add to the confusion, I think when the ballet was first staged in England Desiree was used. I'm pretty sure on this, but they didn't use this name very long.
ABT used Prince Charming back in 1941(?)



Richard

[carbro]

I tried a few searches last night to see if Perrault had given the prince and/or the king a name, and after a couple of hours (and getting sidetracked in the usual websearch diversions), I came up empty.  This may require an actual trip to the library -- Children's Division, at that!

Speaking of sidetracked . . .   Isn't this thread about Florine and her Bluebird in their various balletic guises?

[Crispy]

I hear he prefers to be called "The Artist formerly known as Prince Florimund."  He now goes by an unpronounceable symbol similar to the maker marks on the bottom of Freed shoes.

;-)

[Hans]

Click here for some very detailed information about Sleeping Beauty.

[grace]

getting back to the original question:

Quote

No fluttering!......?

i am not going to refer to any books here - rather to my memory over years of watching and learning and reading...(and i have danced this, too). i say - and this is just me - that it makes sense, to me, that if she is learning to fly, she would be making attempts to fly. so, the moments where one may be directed to flutter - don't ask me now to recall at WHICH moments! - it makes sense to me to flutter...within reason.

and re the prince: my perspective is that it is mostly only the russians who call him Desire; elsewhere he is Florimund (flower of the world). for fascinating insight into the whole story and its psychological ramifications, refer to Bruno Bettelheim's book, the title of which escapes me at the moment, but i'm sure you can work it out, by browsing at Amazon (via the banner, of course!).

[Mel Johnson]

That book is The Uses of Enchantment.  Another good one is by Bronislaw Malinowsky, Magic, Science and Religion.  Both classics of cultural anthropology.

[rg]

according to Francine Du Plessix Gray, when the future Louis XIV was Dauphin he was known in 18th c. France as "Louis le Désiré"

[Mel Johnson]

And when Mme (actually Countess) d'Aulnoy wrote, her nom de plume was "Desirée".

[bart]

rg, on Jan 31 2006, 10:57 AM, said:

according to Francine Du Plessix Gray, when the future Louis XIV was Dauphin he was known in 18th c. France as "Louis le Désiré"

The long marriage of Louis XIII and Anne of Austria (they're the monarchs at the center of Dumas' Muskeeteer series) was childless almost to the end.  Given the personality and apparently ambivalent sexuality of Louis XIII and the turbulent nature of his relationship with his wife, there was some despair of their ever producing an heir.

The birth of Louis (future XIV) and his brother were considered to be something of miracle -- which secured the succession to the throne, kept XIII's unstable brother OFF it, and prevented (or at least delayed) civil war.

Thus "Desired One" has important implications for the welfare of the entire state as well as something more personal.

[Grissi]

rg, on Jan 31 2006, 03:57 PM, said:

according to Francine Du Plessix Gray, when the future Louis XIV was Dauphin he was known in 18th c. France as "Louis le Désiré"

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

It was XVII century, not XVIII, that is important, I think. As Louis XIV inherited the throne from his father in 1643.

[Mel Johnson]

But he did last into the 18th century, the War of the Spanish Succession being his final miscalculation.

[rg]

miscalculation, indeed.
o'course louis le desire was dauphin in the 17th (as noted in the correction post) and not 18th c. (as n my miscalculated dating.) i stand corrected.

[taniusha]

rg, on Feb 4 2006, 04:47 PM, said:

miscalculation, indeed.
o'course louis le desire was dauphin in the 17th (as noted in the correction post) and not 18th c. (as n my miscalculated dating.) i stand corrected.

I know for sure ( I read in some encyclopedia) that Louis XIV stopped dancing around 1680. because he became too old and fat for dancing. That is also the time when other people from the Court stopped dancing, following his example, and professional dancers from Academia that he opened some years before became popular.
So, it is for sure that he lived in 17. century

Anyway, since this is my first post, I just want to say hi to everybody

[leonid]

taniusha, on Nov 14 2006, 08:40 AM, said:

[
Anyway, since this is my first post, I just want to say hi to everybody

Welcome. I for one would like to hear about performances at the National Theatre especially the upcoming Natalya Makarova production of "La Bayadere."
Regards