In 1999 the Maryinsky (formerly Kirov) Ballet and Theater in St. Petersburg re-created its 1890 production of Sleeping Beauty. The revival showed the classic work in its original sets and costumes and restored pantomime and choreography that had been eliminated over the past century. Nevertheless, the work proved unexpectedly controversial, with many Russian dance professionals and historians denouncing it. In order to understand how a historically informed performance could be ridiculed by those responsible for writing the history of Russian and Soviet ballet, Tim Scholl discusses the tradition, ideology, and popular legend that have shaped the development of Sleeping Beauty. In the process he provides a history of Russian and Soviet ballet during the twentieth century. A fascinating slice of cultural history, the book will appeal not only to dance historians but also to those interested in the arts and cultural policies of the Soviet and post-Soviet periods.

MERCEDES LACKEY'S magical A Tale of the Five Hundred Kingdoms series continues with a captivating new adventure… Heavy is the head—and the eyelids—of the princess who wears the crown… In Rosamund's realm, happiness hinges on a few simple beliefs. For every princess there's a prince. The King has ultimate power. Stepmothers should never be trusted. And bad things come to those who break with Tradition…. But when Rosa is pursued by a murderous huntsman and then captured by dwarves, her beliefs go up in smoke. Determined to escape and save her kingdom from imminent invasion, she agrees to become the subject of one of her stepmother's risky incantations—thus falling into a deep, deep sleep. When awakened by a touchy-feely stranger, Rosa must choose between Tradition and her future between a host of eligible princes and a handsome, fair-haired outsider. And learn the difference between being a princess and ruling as a Queen.

In this twist on the Sleeping Beauty fairy tale, Princess Lucette, cursed as a baby by her evil vampire aunt, discovers as she grows older that the only way to protect herself and her kingdom is to train as a vampire slayer. The reader is given chances throughout the text to choose the direction of the plot.

After the death of Queen Eleanor, Beauty and Laurent are implored to take the throne and uphold the ways of complete sensual surrender that have made Eleanor's realm a legend.

Enraged at not being invited to the princess' christening, the thirteenth fairy casts a spell that dooms the princess to sleep for one hundred years.

It started with a mother's love... Fleeing from a forest fire, a mother bear urges her two cubs into the watery shelter of a vast body of water. Though it will be difficult, she knows if they can swim across to the opposite shore, they will be safe. With calls of encouragement and steadfast love, Mother Bear guides her cubs across the great lake, Lake Michigan. And the story of what happens once Mother Bear reaches the far shore becomes the legend behind the natural wonder known as Sleeping Bear Dune. In 1998 writer Kathy-jo Wargin and nature artist Gijsbert van Frankenhuyzen combined their talents to bring The Legend of Sleeping Bear to life. Published to wide acclaim, the book was soon named the Official Children's Book of Michigan.

Step beyond the wall of your own imagination to the place where erotic enchantment lies... When Sleeping Beauty awakes at the Prince's kiss it is the beginning of our story, not the end. Once the prisoner of a spell, locked in the sleep of innocence - now she is the prisoner of sensual love, held fast by the magic of desire. Claimed by the Prince as the slave of his passions, Sleeping Beauty learns that tenderness and cruelty, pleasure and pain, longing and fulfilment are all one in the awesome kingdom of love. Beauty she is - but she is sleeping no more...