Nearly 2,000 patrons attend The Sleeping Beauty

Audiences at recent showings of The Sleeping Beauty were wowed by the high calibre of this iconic full-length ballet.

Performed to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Brigitte Gauci Borda School of Dance on 5 and 6 December, the four-act show featured top soloists from The Royal Ballet in London, as well as hundreds of students, and teachers, from the Brigitte Gauci Borda School of Dance.

“I am absolutely thrilled by the results of The Sleeping Beauty, as well as by the positive feedback that we have had from our audiences,” says Brigitte Gauci Borda, the school’s founder and principal.

“This one-off cultural event really was special for Malta, not just because of the foreign performers taking part, but also because of the quality that we chose to invest into every element – from the staging, which included custom-made scenery, projection animation and lighting effects to elaborate, hand-made costumes. It was all of this that truly set it apart.

“It was also wonderful to watch my students and teachers collaborating with international professionals. This served to motivate them, inspire them and push them to their limits. It was an immense pleasure for me to see all their beaming eyes and happy faces when dancing alongside Erico Montes (in the role of Prince Désiré) and Claire Calvert (Princess Aurora), from The Royal Ballet. It is an experience that I wish we could replicate every year!”

Speaking after his performance, Montes, who also choreographed the ballet, said: “It has been a real pleasure working with Brigitte, her students and her team. I first came to Malta for two weeks in July to work on the choreography, and have since developed a love for working here and staying here. The students have all been so responsive and it was a joy to be part of this fantastic production.”

Aside from marking the 25th anniversary since Ms Gauci Borda opened her ballet school, the staging of The Sleeping Beauty also coincided with Tchaikovsky’s 175th birthday. Gauci Borda produces a large-scale show of this kind every other year, to give her students regular opportunities to work with international industry professionals, while also marking her company’s major milestones.