“The Rose Adagio” is one of the most challenging pieces of choreography in ballet, requiring precise technique, endurance and strength. It is performed in Act 1 of “The Sleeping Beauty”, a ballet first performed in 1890. The music was composed by Tchaikovsky in 1889 and is the second of his three ballets (others - "The Nutcracker" and "Swan Lake").

The hops on pointe in “Giselle”, the 32 fouetté turns in “Swan Lake” - classical ballets are riddled with 'moments' that give even the strongest ballerinas in the world nightmares. In “The Sleeping Beauty” that time comes with “The Rose Adagio,” one of the most famous (and perilous) dance phases in classical ballet. It involves a series of balances which Princess Aurora performs twice with each of four suitors, first at the beginning of the dance and again at the end. These balances are challenging: as she’s standing on pointe, a suitor turns her in a circle. Then she must let go of his hand, balance on one foot, and take the next suitor’s hand without ever coming off pointe. It’s a test of classical technique, but also a show of Aurora’s independence. It should look like she chooses to take each man’s hand, not like she needs to do so.

A modified version of these balances reappears in the Act 3 pas de deux, when Aurora and Prince Desiré dance at their wedding. But this time, instead of asserting her independence, the balance turns into a moment of courtly embrace, demonstrating that, finally, this man is her true love.

More Info: sfballet.blog