I'm Forever Stuck in Ballets! Trivia Quiz

Answer: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

This ballet, based on Carroll's first "Alice" book, starts in the real world at a garden party before transitioning to Wonderland. Several dancers portray two characters: Lewis Carroll is the White Rabbit, Alice's mother (who loves white roses) is the Queen of Hearts (who loves red), and the magician is the Mad Hatter (who taps his part).

There are several references to other ballets, including a scene where the Queen dances a parody of the Rose Adagio from "The Sleeping Beauty".

Answer: La Esmeralda

This ballet version of Victor Hugo's novel "Notre-Dame de Paris" is based on the libretto Hugo himself wrote for an opera version. Unlike the book, the opera and ballet have happy endings: in the ballet, Phoebus prevents Esmeralda's hanging and the two marry.

However, sometimes the ballet is staged with another ending that is much closer to the novel: Esmeralda is hanged, and Quasimodo dances with her corpse after killing Frollo.

Answer: Bolero

Ravel's "Bolero" is the basis for this short dance. Much of it is danced standing or turning on the spot, but there's some leaping towards the end. "Bolero" was the last dance Sylvie Guillem performed. It happened on December 31, 2015, in Japan. The dance was timed so that it ended as the clock struck midnight.

Answer: Ondine

When Ondine comes on land and sees her shadow for the first time, she eventually figures out what it is and dances with it. She falls in love with Palemon, a prince who's already engaged, but he marries her anyway. An unhappy ending awaits him. Margot Fonteyn originally danced the title role. While reviews for the ballet were mixed, her performance stood out as the best part.

Answer: Gloria

Kenneth MacMillian created this short ballet in 1980. It uses music from Francis Poulenc's "Gloria". Seeing this ballet inspired Edward Watson, a principal dancer for the Royal Ballet, who didn't know that ballet could look that way.

Answer: Fall River Legend

This ballet is based on the case of Lizzie Borden, who was accused of killing her father and stepmother with an axe in Fall River in 1892. While Borden was acquitted, the girl in this ballet, called only The Accused, is convicted of the crime. Throughout the ballet, she has a courtship with a preacher, which her stepmother tries to destroy by telling the preacher the girl is mad.

The murders aren't shown, but hinted at with the above blackout and a bloody dress.

Answer: The Concert

The full title of Jerome Robbins' ballet is "The Concert (or The Perils of Everybody)". The part I'm in is called the "Mistake Waltz", which is carefully choreographed to make it appear like someone is always making a mistake--one dancer even forgets to take her glasses off at the start!

Answer: Laurencia

"Laurencia" was one of many Soviet ballets created due to demands that movement have a purpose. Being about a peasant revolution was another bonus for the Soviets. The two-act ballet by Chabukiani contains classical dancing and folk dancing. On the science side, laurencia is a type of red sea algae.

Answer: Lady of the Camellias

Also called "Die Kameliendame", "Lady of the Camellias" is based on the book of the same named by Alexandre Dumas fils, which is also the basis of the opera "La Traviata". Set to Chopin music, the ballet uses the sale of the Marguerite's things after her death as a framing device while her story is told in flashback. Marguerite wears either a red or white camellia in some of her scenes. Red means that she's menstruating; white means that she's available to ply her trade.

Answer: Tales of Beatrix Potter

I'm Jemima Puddle-Duck, a duck having trouble hatching her eggs because farmers always take them. Also presented in this ballet are stories about Pigling Bland, Peter Rabbit, Squirrel Nutkin, and Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle. Everyone wears face-obscuring masks when playing the pigs, frogs, rabbits, squirrels, and foxes.

The men playing pigs wear pointe shoes to simulate hooves, just like the dancer playing Bottom in "The Dream", who wears black pointe shoes when he's turned into a donkey.