Last Friday, PNB raised the curtain on Ronald Hynd’s enchanting production of The Sleeping Beauty. This will be the 5th time PNB has presented the ballet since we acquired it from the English National Ballet in 2001. Here are a few interesting facts about this production that you may not know: 

There are 190 roles to cast for each performance! These include character artists, children, Professional Division students, supers and our Company dancers

Soloist Kylee Kitchens as the Fairy of Beauty.

The Company members have numerous different roles in one performance. Jahna Frantziskonis learns 9 different roles and performs 4 in each show.

Principal dancers Lesley Rausch and Karel Cruz.

In addition to costume changes, there are often shoe changes and wig changes. Kaori Nakamura wears 4 pairs of pointe shoes in one performance. Imagine the activity backstage. 

Principal dancer Laura Tisserand.

Each performance requires 14 dressers, 5 wig masters, 2 makeup artists, and 7 costume maintenance people.

We didn’t have enough size 13 boots, so we borrowed a pair from the Seattle Opera for Josh Grant.

5 dancers will fly in each show and there are 3 pyro effects.

There are several debuts during this run, with Jerome Tisserand performing the role of the Prince for the first time and Rachel Foster and Leta Biasucci making debuts as Princess Aurora.

BUY YOUR TICKETS TODAY! THE SLEEPING BEAUTY Now through Feb. 2 @ McCaw Hall  

All photos © Angela Sterling.