It’s an hour before the show and people start pulling up in their limos! Everyone steps out looking fabulous in their outfits! The first thing everyone sees is this gorgeous theatre in which the performance will happen!
Everyone mingles while taking their seats and waiting for the show to start! Everyone takes a moment to also look at their programs.
Then finally the lights go down and a spotlight comes up on Heather on stage!
“Welcome Ladies and Gentlemen! Please turn off all cell phones and pagers, and please refrain from talking or eating during the performance! And now, the DNBT proudly presents Coppelia”
The spotlight goes down, the curtain comes up, and the stage lights go on!
Hair and Make-up
Everyone wears normal stage make-up along w/:
Swanilda: Street-Bun with no part, the middle of the back of the head.
As Coppelia- Pulled up at Crown of head, Bun, Flower pedice around it.
Wedding- Half up, and flowing almost, flower piece across top of head.
Franz: Pulled Straight back to a Bun at the nape of the neck. Very Natural Make up.
Dr. Coppelius: Middle part, drawn back to a bun at nape of neck. Natural Make-Up.
Coppelia: Half Up, Cork screw curls. Very cute, pinky almost make-up. Pink lips and cheeks.
Burgomeister: No part back to bun at nape of neck. Natural Make-up.
Burgomeister’s Wife: Hair Half up.
Swanildas Mother: Pony tail at nape of neck.
Chinese Doll: Low bun w/ right part.
Spanish Doll: Low bun, left part, red flower in bun. Red Lips. Lots of red blush, Dark eyes.
Cymbolist Doll: Pony Tail at crown of Head, almost like a messy bun: Sparkles on cheeks and eyes
Swanilda’s Friends: Low Pony Tail at nape of neck, Yellow flower head piece around it.
Towns People: All different-Bun with no part, Bun w/ part on Left, bun w/ part on right, half up, Low Pony tail.
Costumes
Choreography
Act 1~Scene opens with Swanilda opening the door of her house waving goodbye to her parents whom are standing at the door. She runs to the center of the stage and does a Pique Arabesque and then into a Pas De Chase and then does the same on the opposite side. She chaines in the direction of Dr Coppelius’s house and then suddenly stops as she notices Coppelia sitting on the balcony reading a book. With her hands on her hips, she looks up at the strange girl. She starts to wave her hands at her, but Coppelia still ignores her. Swanilda then starts to walk away, but then turns back still puzzled at the strange girl. Then shrugging her shoulders she turns around and starts to do a series of pique pirouettes and chaines until she reaches another house which she enters.
As Swanilda exits, Franz enters with a bouquet of flowers in his hand. As he jetes his way in and does a series of grand pirouettes a la second and fouettes looking at the flowers happily as if he’s daydreaming, he too notices the strange girl sitting on the balcony. Running up to take a look, he tries to impress her by doing a jete entrelace followed by a double tour en l’air landing on his knees as if serenading her. Suddenly Coppelia stands up dropping her book and blows Franz a kiss. Excitedly, Franz drops the bouquet of flowers and tries to blow a kiss back to Coppelia.
At that moment, Swanhilda walks back into the town square with a few of her friends only to see Franz flirting with the strange girl on the balcony. Angrily she runs over to Franz and pulls him away, making him fall in the process. Franz quickly looks at Swanilda trying to find some way to apologize to her. Giving her the bouquet he had in his hands, Swanilda just pushes it away, turning her back on him and crosses her arms over her chest. In desperation, Franz tries to impress her by doing several jetes and spilt jumps hoping she’ll forgive him. However, Swanhilda is still as stubborn as ever and ignores him. Finally Franz gets down on his knees in front of her and ties to take her hand in his. Swanilda turns her head to the other side, trying not to look at him then en pointe she starts to walk off haughtily to join her friends. Franz tries to chase after her but Swanilda’s friends prevent him from getting anywhere near her. A bunch of the villagers enter the town square happily interrupting the couple’s argument. They start to dance a murzurka and Franz makes it worse by joining another village girl in the dance and leaving Swanilda alone with her friends.
After the dance, the Burgomaster enters the square and announces that all couples wishing to get married may receive their dowries this afternoon and thus may be wed the next day. He finds Swanhilda and places his daughter’s hand in Franz in a gesture of whether they were to be married. However, Swanilda still hasn’t forgiven Franz and turns away. Desperate to solve the problem, the Burgomaster takes a sheaf of corn and passes it to Swanilda saying that the corn will tell her whether Franz is her true love or not.
Taking the sheaf of corn, Swanilda places it to her ear but before she can hear anything, Franz grabs her hand in a gesture to dance. As the villagers move to the side, Swanhilda and Franz dance together. With Franz standing behind her, Swanhilda steps up into a pique arabesque with Franz supporting her then goes into a penchee and then down into a couru turn and then does a double pirouette with Franz supporting. Then Franz lifts her into a supported jete and back down she steps onto a attitude devant while Franz promenades her. After which she stretches her leg into and arabesque and back down into fifth. After that they move into a circular motion to meet each other again doing chaines and then the first part is repeated again. After which Swanhilda runs diagonally away from him and does a pique arabesque and then runs back to him where he is standing in fourth with his right hand out which she uses as a barre and does another penchee. Then she courus to stand in front of Franz with her arms in open fourth and looks into Franz’s eyes. Then she goes down and then Franz lifts her up in a presage lift and holds before putting her down. As he does that, Swanilda puts the sheaf of corn to her ear, but then shakes her head as she didn’t hear anything. Sadly, she walks away from Franz to her friends as his hand goes out in her direction but lets her leave with her friends. He then exists the stage.
As the other villagers start to move off the stage as night falls, Dr Coppelius cautiously opens the door of his home and looks around to see if anyone is there. Satisfied that the square is empty, he locks her door and walks across the square. The bunch of boys run onto the stage laughing and seeing the eccentric doctor, they all start to tease him and in the commotion, Dr Coppelius drops his key unknowingly and runs offstage with the boys chasing him.
Swanilda and her friends come back onto the stage again, the girls trying to comfort Swanilda after the day she had. By chance they come across a key lying on the ground in front of Dr Coppelius’s house. Curious to find out who that girl on the balcony was, Swanilda takes the key and opens the door to the house. After which her friends follow her in. After they go in, Dr Coppelius comes running in realizing that he had lost the key. He returns home to find his door open and rushes upstairs to see who has broken in. As the curtain falls, Franz returns and starts to climb up to the balcony to meet the beautiful Coppelia
15 minute intermission!
Act 2~Inside Dr. Coppelius’ house, Swanilda and her 3 friends pique arabesque around looking for Coppelia. They find her behind a curtain and all do a shocked pose turn as they are shocked to learn that she’s only a doll. They bouree around as they laugh to think that Franz fell for a mannequin. While Swanilda stares mesmerized at coppelia, her 3 friends chaine around and open the other curtains to find 3 other dolls~spanish, chinese, and cymbalist. Her 1st friend winds up the cymbalist doll and the doll does 2 piques into and arabesque, pose turn, finish in 5th. Then they wind up the spanish doll and the doll does 2 balances and then steps into an attitude devant. Then they wind up the chinese doll and the doll does chasse, grand jete, double pirouette, finish in 5th. Dr. Coppelius then enters to see girls playing w/ his dolls and he chases them out of his house, except for Swanilda who is still hidden behind Coppelia’s curtain. Franz arrives, and chaines and piques around hoping to find Coppélia, and the Doctor confronts him. As Franz explains that he wants to meet the attractive girl, Dr. Coppélius gets an idea. He offers Franz a drink (in which he has put a sleeping powder). Franz falls asleep, and Dr. Coppélius begins his plan - he will instill Franz's life force in Coppélia. He is thrilled and grand jetes around when Coppélia does come to life(Coppelia does a triple pirouette into a single arabesque turn, lands in fifth and then does a develope a la seconde)! Finally he has someone real to share his lonely life. The truth, though, is that it is Swanilda, pretending to be Coppélia in order to rescue Franz. Sounds of activity outside announce the morning. Swanilda does a chasse saut de chat over to Franz and rouses the drowsy Franz! She then chasse, saute arabesque’s over to Dr. Coppelius and reveals to him that she's not the doll! Her and Franz then chasse, grand jete to escape from his house. The villagers are surprised when Swanilda (dressed as Coppélia) and Franz grand jete clumsily from Dr. Coppélius' house-they're about to be married, but they're not dressed for the ceremony. Swanilda’s 3 friends chanae w/ Swanilda offstage to help her get ready. Franz chanaes off to the other side to get ready also. While they’re getting ready offstage, the other townspeople dance a divertissement~2 balances, tombe, pas de bouree, glissade, pas de chat, 2 balances, tombe, pas de bourre, glissade, petite jete, grand jete, pique into a triple pirouette, land in arabesque. Swanilda, Franz, and Swanilda’s friends pique and chanae back on and take their places for the wedding. Swanilda and Franz(while holding hands) dance down the wedding aisle~chasse, saute arabesque, chasse, saute arabesque, chasse, swanilda does a jete supported by Franz, then they take their places for the wedding. after they are married, Dr. Coppelius grand jetes on and demands compensation for the damage swanilda caused. Swanilda does a jete en tournant over to him and offers to pay him her dowry, but the burgomeister(her father) moves her to the side and he pays Dr. Coppelius. Now that everyone is happy, the townspeople(including Dr. Coppelius) do a series of pas de chats and pas de basques to form a huge semi circle w/ franz and swanilda in the center. The townspeople watch as Swanilda and Franz do their first dance as a married couple~Swanilda(supported by Franz) steps up into an arabesque and then goes down into a penche, she comes up and does a triple pirouette, then she does a chasse(w/ franz) into a supported jete, then she does a huge develope a la seconde, then Franz lifts her up into a presage lift, and then swoops her down into a bird lift(this is the final pose). Curtains close.
The curtains rise and the whole ensemble takes a bow. Then Swanilda and Franz step forward and take individual bows.
Everyone claps and Heather walks on stage to hand everyone a bouquet of roses! Congratulations you were all wonderful! And thank you to everyone for coming! I hope you enjoyed the show!
