Review: The Sleeping Beauty (Royal Albert Hall)

Review by Hywel Farrow-Wilton

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I can’t confess to being a great dancer; I can only just about pull off a passable box-step. So please bear with me as I evaluate some of the most exquisite ballet dancing I have ever had the pleasure to witness. And now bear with me again as I grab my thesaurus to find other words for exquisite. It will be a challenge because there really is no other word for it. The English National Ballet’s production of Sir Kenneth MacMillan’s The Sleeping Beauty is a masterclass in storytelling on a tremendous scale. Whether you are a ballet aficionado or can’t tell a Plié from a Port de bras, this spectacular show is sure to thrill and entertain ballet lovers of all ages and abilities. 

The Sleeping Beauty is one of the best-known and most performed ballets in the world. Written by the legendary Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and originally choreographed by Marius Petipa, it had its premiere in St. Petersburg in 1890. This particular production is choreographed by Sir Kenneth MacMillan originally for the American Ballet Theatre in 1987, and transferred across the pond in 2005 when it first entered the English National Ballet’s repertoire and has been performed by them ever since. Despite being regularly performed by the company, this is the first time they have performed the show in the Royal Albert Hall, and frankly, I don’t know what took them so long. The splendour of the hall elevates the dancing and especially the glorious music played by ENB’s Philharmonic orchestra. Even if you have seen this production before, you probably have never heard the show like this before.

If you have never seen a ballet before, this would be a fantastic starting point, as almost everyone knows the rough story of Sleeping Beauty. The show is split into two acts, each with two scenes. It opens with Aurora’s (Sleeping Beauty) christening, which is suddenly interrupted by the evil witch Carabosse, who curses the baby so that when she pricks her finger on the end of a spinning wheel, she will fall into an unawakenable sleep that only true love’s kiss can awaken her from. As the story goes, she pricks her finger and falls asleep on her sixteenth birthday and sleeps for one hundred years. In the second act, we meet the love-sick Prince Desire, who, with the help of the Lilac Fairy, may be the key to awakening Princess Aurora just in time for a big, fancy wedding. 

Tchaikovsky’s score sounds utterly incredible throughout the piece. The vast ENB Philharmonic orchestra do a fantastic job of filling the space under the musical direction of Maria Seletskaja. The score moves effortlessly between jaunty flute-led movements and thunderous anthems of villainy that shake the core of the hall. My only problem was that the entire orchestra was placed behind the cyclorama that had been erected, so the sound did have the distinct quality of ‘being played behind a large wall’. This isn’t a huge issue, and thanks to the sheer number of musicians and the hall’s acoustics, the music always sounded clear, but it was just a small shame that the wall slightly muffles it.

Choreography by the late, great Sir Kenneth MacMillan is unsurprisingly sublime. As they describe in the programme, this production is quintessential classical ballet with indescribably beautiful solos and duets from the principals, as well as impeccably timed group dances, both uniquely brilliant to watch in their own way. As well as the dancers, each scene is filled with several character artists playing courtiers, members of the royal family, etc., and it was great to see their pantomimic reactions with lots of fun interactions between them that are well worth looking out for. Whilst I understand that it is conventional in ballet to have lengthy transitions between scenes, where just music plays, there was one such transition in the second act that was just too long not to be a bit boring. It is a true, authentic experience for the ballet, but surely in this day and age, something could have been going on for the audience to watch to maintain engagement; otherwise, the audience starts to disengage from the piece, which is a shame.  

The absolute stand-out design element for me had to be the elegant costumes originally by Nicholas Georgiadis. The costumes could honestly be worth the price of the tickets themselves, as the dancers are clad in tutus and tights bursting with colour and sequins and the background actors are dressed in regal clothing ranging from the Jacobean to the Cavalier to the Victorian eras.  Set design by Charlotte MacMillan appears to have been slightly changed from the production pictures featured in the programme. In this production, all the action occurs on a huge blank stage with only a couple of set pieces ever appearing. At the back of the stage is a huge wall onto which projections are played, showing different locations as well as Act/Scene numbers. Whilst the projections are pretty, it is a far cry from the glorious physical set designs of other ENB shows I have seen. This may be a compromise for the space they are playing in as you can’t fly in any set from above the stage, and there aren’t really any wings to speak of to hide the set side of the stage. The upside of this is that the dancing and music can rightly take centre stage, and without huge set pieces to get distracted by, the audience can really get to feel the artistry of the performances more deeply.

The ENB rotates its Principal Leads and Lead Soloists throughout its run, so there will be a different combination of performers on at each performance. At my performance, the show was led by dancer Emma Hawes as Princess Aurora. What can be said about her except that her performance was simply outstanding. It should not be possible for a human to lift their legs as high and as extended as she does, but she makes it look completely effortless. Aitor Arrieta as Prince Desire was equally outstanding despite sadly only featuring in the second act. However, what he lacks in stage time in act one, he makes up for in leaping around the stage at impressive heights. He had fantastic solo moments and was a gracious performer when duetting with Hawes. 

James Streeter as Carabosse was utterly camp and a stand-out performer in the show. There was something very ‘Miss Trunchbull’ about his characterisation, which was only enhanced by the fact that Carabosse is dressed to look like Queen Elizabeth I, complete with oversized ruff and huge ginger hair. Anri Sugiura was a pleasure to watch as the Lilac Fairy, playing the role of ‘fairy godmother’ with tenderness and at times ferocity.

Overall, a few questionable design elements could not derail this splendiferous production in one of the world’s greatest music venues. This is a perfect ballet for introducing children or someone new to the form and turning them into a devoted fan. If you are thinking of buying tickets, take my advice, and don’t sleep on it.

The Sleeping Beauty plays at the Royal Albert Hall until 28^th June 2026. Tickets from https://www.royalalberthall.com/tickets/events/2026/the-sleeping-beauty