A ballet tells its story with dance and music, and no words. A child who knows the story before the curtain goes up can follow far more of what happens. Here are six famous ballets, each retold in a few sentences, with the music to hear first.
The six at a glance
| Ballet | Music by | First danced | Kind of story |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Nutcracker | Tchaikovsky | 1892, St. Petersburg | A Christmas adventure |
| Swan Lake | Tchaikovsky | 1877, Moscow | A fairy tale with a sad side |
| The Sleeping Beauty | Tchaikovsky | 1890, St. Petersburg | A fairy tale |
| Coppélia | Delibes | 1870, Paris | A comedy |
| Cinderella | Prokofiev | 1945, Moscow | A fairy tale |
| The Firebird | Stravinsky | 1910, Paris | A Russian fairy tale |
1. The Nutcracker
On Christmas Eve, Clara’s godfather, Drosselmeyer, gives her a wooden nutcracker shaped like a soldier. At midnight, the tree grows tall, and the toys come to life. The Nutcracker leads the toy soldiers in a battle against the Mouse King, and Clara helps him win. He turns into a prince. Together they travel through a snowy forest to the Land of Sweets, where the Sugar Plum Fairy puts on a show of dances in their honor.
Hear first: “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy” and “Waltz of the Flowers.”
Read the Nutcracker story for kids and the Nutcracker Suite listening guide.
2. Swan Lake
A sorcerer named Rothbart has put a spell on Princess Odette. She is a swan by day and a woman only at night. Prince Siegfried meets her by the lake and promises to love her, which will break the spell. At a ball, Rothbart brings his daughter, Odile, dressed to look like Odette. Siegfried is fooled, and he makes his promise to the wrong girl. He rushes back to the lake to beg Odette to forgive him.
The ending changes from one company to the next. In some versions, the two are parted. In others, their love breaks the spell.
Hear first: the swan theme, played by the oboe, and the “Dance of the Little Swans.”
Read the Swan Lake story for kids and the Swan Lake listening guide.
3. The Sleeping Beauty
A king and queen hold a party for their baby daughter, Aurora. Good fairies bring gifts. The wicked fairy Carabosse was not invited. She storms in and lays a curse: one day Aurora will prick her finger on a spindle and die. The Lilac Fairy cannot undo the curse, but she can soften it. Aurora will sleep for a hundred years.
On her sixteenth birthday, Aurora pricks her finger, and the whole castle falls asleep. A hundred years later, the Lilac Fairy leads a prince to the castle. He wakes Aurora with a kiss. Characters from other fairy tales come to dance at the wedding.
Hear first: the Waltz from Act 1. Its tune was later used in a famous cartoon film of the same story.
Read the Sleeping Beauty listening guide.
For a longer version to read aloud, see the Sleeping Beauty ballet story.
4. Coppélia
Franz blows a kiss to a beautiful girl who sits reading on the toymaker’s balcony. His sweetheart, Swanhilda, is not pleased. She sneaks into the toymaker’s workshop with her friends and finds out the truth: the girl is a life-size doll. When the toymaker, Dr. Coppélius, comes home, Swanhilda dresses in the doll’s clothes and pretends to come to life. She tricks him, rescues Franz, and all ends well with a wedding.
Hear first: the Mazurka and the Music of the Automatons.
Read the Coppélia story for kids.
5. Cinderella
Cinderella works all day for her stepmother and two silly stepsisters. An invitation comes to the prince’s ball, and they leave her at home. Her fairy godmother appears with the fairies of the four seasons, who dress her for the ball. There is one rule: she must leave before midnight. She dances with the prince. The clock strikes twelve, she runs, and she loses a slipper on the stairs. The prince searches far and wide for the girl whose foot fits the slipper, and he finds her at home.
Hear first: the midnight scene, where the orchestra ticks and chimes, and the Waltz from the ball.
Read Prokofiev for kids. For a longer version, see the Cinderella ballet story.
6. The Firebird
Prince Ivan wanders into the enchanted garden of Kashchei, a wicked king who turns his enemies to stone. Ivan catches the Firebird, a shining bird with feathers of fire. She begs to go free, and he lets her go. In thanks, she gives him a feather to wave if he is ever in danger.
Thirteen princesses, Kashchei’s prisoners, come out to dance, and Ivan falls in love with one of them. Kashchei’s monsters catch Ivan. He waves the feather. The Firebird makes the monsters dance until they drop, and she sings them to sleep. She shows Ivan the egg that holds Kashchei’s soul. Ivan smashes it, the spell is broken, and he marries his princess.
Hear first: the Infernal Dance, the Lullaby, and the Finale.
Read the Firebird listening guide.
Which ballet first?
| For a child who | Try |
|---|---|
| Is going to a ballet for the first time | The Nutcracker or Coppélia |
| Loves fairy tales | The Sleeping Beauty or Cinderella |
| Likes magic and monsters | The Firebird |
| Is ready for a sadder story | Swan Lake |
How to share a ballet story
- Read the story aloud. Five minutes is enough.
- Play one piece of the music. Ask which part of the story it fits.
- Watch one scene. Some ballet companies post short clips.
- Act it out. Give each child a character.
- See it on stage, if a company near you is dancing it.
Questions to ask after
- Who was your favorite character?
- How did the dancers show that someone was angry, sad, or in love?
- Which music do you remember?
- How would you end the story?
Print and play
For more tales in music, read classical music about fairy tales. Use a listening journal page for each ballet. For The Nutcracker, print the listening map. For what to expect at the theater, read ballet for kids: where to start and what to wear to the ballet or the opera with kids.
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Use it with your kids
Print a listening page, a practice chart, or a composer fact sheet. Or try a tool, such as the composer timeline or the piece picker.