destroying dance history

It’s wedding night at the temple. Monks, bayadères and an assortment of guests have gathered to witness the union of Gamzatti and Solor. A golden idol dances. Solor isn’t high at this point, so I guess it’s real. Solor has a major opium hangover, and like a big baby, begins pulling a lot of faces that…

Act II of our story opens in Solor’s tent. A flautist and Magedaveya are trying to cheer a grief stricken Solor, with little success. Solor is inconsolable – gnawed by remorse and wondering just how long it will take for the flautist to get tired. Of course, it’s hard to feel sorry for Solor when you remember that he promised to marry two women, and then let…

A big engagement party is being held for Solor and Gamzatti in the garden of the Rajah’s palace. There are a lot of guests there, and a number of celebratory dances break out. Like, A LOT. These dances feature a bunch of people that don’t really have anything to do with our story. They are also exactly why people hate…

In a room in his palace, the Rajah Dugmanta, head of the principality, has decided to reward his favourite warrior, Solor, for his bravery. A gift card seems too impersonal, so the Rajah decides to give Solor his daughter, Gamzatti. When the Rajah tells Gamzatti she’s becoming a trophy wife (literally), and that she’ll be marrying a complete stranger, she’s a…

Solor – a noble warrior Nikiya – a temple dancer (aka bayadère) Gamzatti – the Rajah’s (ruler’s) daughter Magedaveya – a fakir (devoted follower of the temple) The High Brahmin – the high priest of the temple Rajah Dugmanta of Golconda – Gamzatti’s dad and ruler of Golconda . . . Our story begins at nightfall, just outside an ancient temple in India. A gaggle of warriors, led by Solor, have returned from the hunt of a great tiger. Solor,…

Set in a kingdom in mythical, ancient India, La Bayadère is a story of crop tops, unrequited love, and questionable decision making. It’s a story that could easily be told in five minutes, but has been stretched into a two hour affair with a bunch of characters dancing in roles that have nothing to do with…

Backstory: apparently, the residents of Giselle’s village like to bury people in a mysterious glade, by a woodland lake. This is also where the Wilis are known to gather. Wilis are victims of unrequited love, sometimes called Died Brides. They haunt the glade dressed in bridal gowns and… draperies. These spirits were jilted by their lovers before their…

Quick recap: Giselle is being pursued by two suitors – Hilarion and Duke Albrecht (who is disguised as a farmer named Loys). Giselle has fallen for Albrecht and Hilarion is pretty jealous. It is an autumn morning during the grape harvest, Albrecht is wooing Giselle, Hilarion is getting annoyed, and things are about to get…

Our story takes place in a small Rhineland village. The grape harvest is underway, and a bunch of people with ridiculous names are about to do some weird and confusing things. That’s what people did during the Middle Ages. Netflix hadn’t been invented yet. Hilarion is a gamekeeper – that’s better than being a rat…