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AUDIENCE REVIEW: The Little Prince

Company:
Ballet X

Performance Date:
July 18 2026

Freeform Review:

It is the pillow talk, that stretched linen over plains of mattress and mountains of covers, which we find ourselves in the audience of Annabelle Lopez Ochoa’s Le Petit Prince. A good night story of fairy tales and life’s darkest secrets. Adapted to a ballet it really sets the stage with its white light, resembling a soft cloud, and the comfort of being tucked into bed.

The cast of varous personalitlies, a mysterious low bah-ing sheep creeps into our sub-conscious, and we almost forget about it altogether. Until another “Ba-h-h-h” out of nowhere. In the story, we patiently wait to see a sheep, or the Fox, as our focus in the audience turns to the entourage of stranger characters. We pick out the characteristics in the description for us of the key players in the Little Prince’s journey. Starting with a Rose, we see her dying under a clear umbrella, the Snake, we follow them most of all in their Bob Fosse style jazz dance, a King, that is frustrated by the looks of it, a Narcissist, we clap along with, a drunkard, I had the most difficult finding through it all they seem to bland right into the background. Then again, we come across a business woman with a suit case of stars, and a Lamp Lighter, I mistaken for the elephant in the story - oops, and our trusty geographer before returning back to our crashed Pilot.

We share in the search for meaning in the appearances of adulthood, and the Little Prince’s experience, his ideas are different  from what they think really matters. 

“Le petit prince avait sur les choses sérieuses des idées très différentes des idées des grandes personnes.”

de Saint-Exupéry, Antoine. Le Petit Prince (French Edition) (p. 15). (Function). Kindle Edition. 

Ballet X of course, is known for having multiple perspectives on modern style ballets from choreographers around the globe. Annabelle Lopez Ochoa’s The Little Prince takes a close reading of the story for refreshing our imaginations, of what that means to be, Les Grandes Personnes. 

Yet, the imagery is subtle, stage design by Matt Saunders implied sweet dreams, and composer and musician, Peter Salem, gives their place spectacular dimensions. The libretto & dramaturgy, Nancy Meckler, reminds us of this dreamy landscape simply by asking, “Where are you,” and “Who are you?” The little Prince, danced by Eli Alford, in a pas-de-deux with the Pilot, danced by Jonathan Montepara, and we ask ourselves, what to make of the box.

Author:
Chuck Schultz

Website:
WHYSEEART.COM

Photo Credit:
Chuck Schultz