New Works From Chattanooga Ballet
Ever since the 1860 original choreographed by Marie Taglioni, companies have been staging “Le Papillion (The Butterfly)”. It’s a fairy tale about a mistreated maidservant, Farfalla, imprisoned by an evil fairy, Hamza.
A prince, Djalma, happens by the fairy’s house and is smitten by Farfalla, but her jealous mistress turns her into a butterfly. From there, tropes reminiscent of the Seven Swans, the Frog Prince, and other tales abound. Farfalla alternates between woman and butterfly several times, and Hamza, too, gets a turn at beauty when she intercepts a kiss meant for her rival. Eventually Hamza is turned into stone and the prince and Farfalla live happily ever after.
The original ballet, scored by Jacques Offenbach, has been revived and reset periodically across the late 19th and 20th century; still, it’s far less familiar than staples such as “Swan Lake” or “The Sleeping Beauty”. Previews on Chattanooga Ballet’s Facebook page reveal scintillating costumes and crisp, bright choreography.
You can experience this gossamer fairy tale at Chattanooga Ballet’s new production, choreographed by artistic director Andrew Parker, this Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. The evening production also features other new choreography by Maggie Pelton and Christopher Stuart.
Visit theatrecentre.com/current-productions to purchase tickets.