Kupesic, Rajka. The White Ballets.

Kupesic, Rajka.   The White Ballets.  Tundra Books, 2011.   40p.  $19.95

ISBN 978-0-88776-923-8  elm/ms      VG-BN      

     This book provides an introduction to the “White Ballets”: “Giselle,” “Swan Lake,” and “La Bayadere.”  Balletomanes are familiar with White Ballets, i.e., ballets that provide a special challenge for the corps de ballet, who, dressed in white tutus, are taken from the background and placed directly in the limelight, center stage.  The dancers are driven to  perform as one entity, striving to achieve identical steps, movements, and facial expressions.  This volume features three famous  White Ballets: “Giselle,” “Swan Lake,” and “La Bayadere.”
     Author/illustrator Kupesic, herself a former dancer with the National Ballet School (Zagreb), provides a personalized glimpse into the world of dance performance.  Her stylized paintings are reminiscent of Russian folk art, and cleverly incorporate elements of the abbreviated retellings of the ballet librettos.  Each story is followed by a history of the specific ballet associated with it, along with the author’s memories of performing in or attending the ballet.  She goes on to explain elements of the scenes depicted in the paintings that she created for each tale. 
     The combination of engaging background and interpretation will be interesting and useful for older readers, and the artwork and  stories, told in fairy-tale-like language, will make this an appealing volume for all ages.  
Subject: Ballets -- Stories, plots, etc. -- Juvenile literature.

Hilary Welliver