Les Enfants du Paradis

Dear Reader,

I went to the Opera Garnier to watch a ballet-- Les Enfants du Paradis. It was simply astounding. I remember walking up the famous steps in order to enter the theater, with my nervous expectations for what everything would be like. I was escorted to my seat and the ballet began almost immediately-- from the very first, I was absorbed. The dancers told their story with grace, elegance, and simplicity and yet they were able to capture every audience member's attention. Although the ballet was three hours long, it did not feel this way-- I could have continued watching. The choreography was wonderful and original as well. Each danser played his/her character well, only enhancing the story. The ballet recounted the story of a mime who falls in love with a lady, only to lose her to other men-- it is a ballet describing the very trials of love. At the commencement of the intermission, hundreds of paper flyers were dropped from the ceiling by the dancers and an informal scene from Othello was perfomed on the famous stairway between a pair of the dancers. They were so graceful that it was hard to believe that they were human-- they could have been fairies or other-wordly creatures, simply because of the beauty and agility of their movements which seemed almost impossible and incredible to me--someone who is not a ballet dancer.

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