Transforming into a princess

Michele Wiles has not outgrown her childhood fantasies of being a fairy tale princess. At 27 years old, she is realizing them.

In her third year as a principal dancer for the world-renowned American Ballet Theatre, Wiles is one of six ballerinas starring as Aurora in a new production of Tchaikovsky’s “The Sleeping Beauty,” opening tonight at the Orange County Performing Arts Center.

“My big thing was that I wanted to be a ballerina, and to be a ballerina, you have to be a princess,” she said. “I believe Aurora is one of the greatest roles for a classical ballerina.”

But being a princess isn’t easy. In addition to the technical feats, Wiles said it is a challenge portraying the metamorphosis from “joyful adolescent” into “mature princess.”

“It’s not as simple as saying, ‘I am a princess,’” she said. “You have to express maturity and growth throughout the ballet.”

Staged by Kevin McKenzie, famed ballerina Gelsey Kirkland and her husband Michael Chernov, the three-act performance tells the timeless tale of the beautiful princess who, on her 16th birthday, is cursed to a century of sleep by the evil sorceress Carabosse before awakening to the kiss of a handsome prince.

Though more than a century has passed since the ballet was first staged, the fairy tale has scarcely changed.

In the American Ballet Theatre’s sixth take on the story, producers have embellished the scenery, costumes and special effects for a more “fairy tale-esque” production.

“It’s Sleeping Beauty — everybody has seen it, there’s been a cartoon, everybody knows the story,” Wiles said. “But it’s a whole new vision of it.”

For Wiles, working with Kirkland — who formerly played the leading role and danced alongside Mikhail Baryshnikov in the company’s production of “The Nutcracker” — is a dream.

“At first, I had to get over the fact that I was star-struck by her,” said Wiles, a graduate of the Kirov Academy of Ballet in Washington, D.C. “I remember trying to imitate her when I was 8 years old.”

Youngsters with their own dreams of taking center stage will have the chance to meet Angelina Ballerina, the little star with big dreams, following the matinee performances on Saturday and Sunday.