Sebastian Ballet Suite

Composer: MENOTTI, Gian Carlo
  • Sebastian was the first of three ballets written by Menotti. He completed the one-act ballet in 1944 and then adapted the music into an orchestral suite in 1945.1
  • The ballet suite consists of seven movements:
    1. Introduction
    2. Barcarolle
    3. Baruffa (Street Fight)
    4. Cortège
    5. Sebastian’s Dance
    6. Dance of the Wounded Courtesan
    7. Pavane
  • The plot of Sebastian takes place in Venice in the 17th century. A Moorish enslaved person named Sebastian is in love with a courtesan, who in turn, is in love with and loved by a prince. The Prince’s evil sisters seek to prevent the union between the Prince and the courtesan through witchcraft. In an attempt to kill the courtesan by stabbing her with arrows, Sebastian has disguised himself in her place and takes the brunt of the attack. His self-sacrifice dispels the sisters’ magic, allowing the Prince and the courtesan to be reunited.2
    • Given the arrow imagery and name, there is almost certainly an allusion to Saint Sebastian and his martyrdom.

Sources

  1. Bruce Archibald and Jennifer Barnes, “Menotti, Gian Carlo,” Grove Music Online (2024), accessed May 27, 2026, https://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/grovemusic/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.001.0001/omo-9781561592630-e-0000018410.
  2. Emily Coleman, “Gian Carlo Menotti – Sebastian Ballet Suite,” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1J7ZwTEn3ck.

Cut IDs

25770