Alberta Ballet's The Sleeping Beauty
Set Design by Curtis Van Charles
Theatrical Set Design · Alberta Ballet
Calgary-area artist Curtis Van Charles collaborated with Alberta Ballet as set designer for its production of The Sleeping Beauty, creating monumental mixed-media stage environments inspired by Alberta's natural landscapes.
The project involved more than 600 hours of creative work, with enormous 60-foot-wide by 30-foot-high backdrops and multiple layers of artwork designed to bring a contemporary visual perspective to the classic ballet.
Bringing Alberta's Landscapes to the Stage
During the initial creative discussions, Alberta Ballet's Associate Artistic Director Christopher Anderson shared a vision for The Sleeping Beauty that stood out to Curtis: a contemporary aesthetic inspired by Alberta's outdoors, designed to connect with modern audiences.
The challenge was to create an immersive visual environment without drawing attention away from the dancers. Every element needed to complement the choreography, costumes, and storytelling while bringing its own artistic character to the stage.
Creating the Stage Artwork
The production occupied much of Curtis's 2018, requiring more than 600 hours to develop the large-scale mixed-media environments.
Each of the three scenes featured four to six layers of artwork on either side of the stage, extending from the foreground to the back. The backdrops measured an impressive 60 × 30 feet.
Most of the artwork was suspended as scenic elements, while selected three-dimensional features were fabricated by hand. The foreground pillars in Act III, for example, were carved from foam and painted.
The finished set brought together contemporary artwork, large-scale scenic design, and theatrical storytelling in a production that demanded both artistic vision and careful attention to how the scenery would function around the dancers.
Press & Recognition
Calgary Journal | The Sleeping Beauty in the Rockies
Curtis's set design was featured in Calgary Journal's coverage of Alberta Ballet's The Sleeping Beauty, highlighting the production's Alberta-inspired visual direction.
Read the Calgary Journal article
Alberta Ballet | Official Production Credits
Curtis Van Charles and Carvel Creative are credited for the production's set design.
Explore More Van Charles Art
Curtis's work extends beyond theatrical set design into large-scale murals, public art installations, and original artwork commissioned for businesses and private collectors.