Collaboration on another classic: Indianapolis Ballet, ISO join forces for 'The Sleeping Beauty'

One of many good things said to come in threes (so far) is the collaboration between the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and Indianapolis Ballet. The fairy-tale formula of the threefold charm fits perfectly with the current production of "The Sleeping Beauty." The Petipa-Tchaikovsky masterpiece tops all stage and screen versions of Charles Perrault's beloved fairy tale.

In the first of three performancees Friday night in Clowes Hall, the guiding force was the company's interim director, Michael Vernon, succeeding the inspired founding director Victoria Lyras, who retired late last year. The production looked splendid, sets and costumes alike, especially in the first scene, The Christening, in which the traditional rite for infants at society's highest level is at the peak of splendor.

Yoshiko Kamikusa danced the Rose Adagio on opening night.

But of course, an error of royal etiquette, the seneschal Catalabutte's failure to invite the wicked fairy Carabosse, promises to be fatal to the christened Princess Aurora.  Carabosse's stunning interruption of the proceedings was amply exciting on opening night. Borne on a dark chariot with several menacing attendants, the uninvited guest pronounces a curse on Aurora. Any coming in contact with needle and spindle and the merest prick of a finger will spell her doom. 

Willam Robinson, a dancer of infinite resource including expertise at sly comedy, filled this crucial character role to perfection. We reveled in his portrayal of Mercutio in "Romeo and Juliet" two years ago. This time, Carabosse's villainy is instantly stamped upon the story, even while it's delightful to contemplate. Carabosse's return in the scene presenting Aurora as a nubile teenager carried the inevitability of fate. Witnessing such a good performance, the audience is glad to see the evil fairy's defeat accomplish poetic justice. 

The intervention of the Lilac Fairy, elegantly danced by Jessica Miller on Friday night, checks Carabosse's malevolence plausibly, as a hundred-year sleep is imposed upon the royal palace and all who live there.  Earlier, at the christening, Miller had rounded off with a climactic solo the nature sprites' individual salutes (crowned by Sierra Levin's Golden Vine Fairy) to the infant Princess. The role, representing the narrative's supernatural savior, does not allow for "development," but it still presents the challenge of making a magical character project heroism, which Miller's portrayal did adorably.

Individual showcases rule the day over the narrative, but the excellence of the ballet is collective at several points. Reflecting Tchaikovsky's music, all parts of the story — collective and individual alike — contributed something distinctive balletically in this well-integrated production. 

The focus on Aurora that emerges in the second act depends upon the presentation of the princess as a young woman ready to make good on the privileged status her royal birth has destined her for. Yoshiko Kamigusa made a radiant impression, underlined by the Princess' poignant naivete that's temporarily her undoing. Her reception of the suitor princes, requiring a lengthy pose on point, was spellbinding. Her succumbing to the curse had the right controlled collapse of vitality, awaiting the Lilac Fairy's rescue.

Luzemberg Santana played the prince who eventually wins her hand a hundred years after. The way he mimed the search, guided by the Lilac Fairy, allowed the dramatic tension to mount until the climactic kiss that awakens Aurora. The staging, with its picturesque lighting design, helped the magical time bridge look convincing. 

The final act makes elaborate work of the climactic royal wedding, with a series of enchanting divertissements. Avery Ward as the White Cat and Carson van Popering as Puss in Boots were fine partners in caricature.  Bluebird (Marlon Frometa) and Princess Florine (Ada Peruzzi) ensured that serious ardor would win out, presenting a parallel devotion to the elegance of the newlyweds. 

The collective celebration emerges for the finale, as the wedding guests smoothly gather for a final tableau in one of ballet's happiest endings. The suggestions of hard-won ecstasy were always reinforced by the flexibility and warmth of the orchestral accompaniment. It flourished under the seasoned mastery of conductor Jack Everly, whose resume by itself is practically a sufficient endorsement of this welcome history of collaboration.