Ludwig II, the Mad King of Bavaria
Musique Mécanique par le Théâtre Électrique ::
"Once Upon a Dream" by Peter TchaikovskyIn 1869, King Ludwig II, the Mad King of Bavaria, began to exhibit fits of chaotic behavior in his Courtiers’ presence, demanding his soldiers round up random citizens for arrest for no reason (or treason) and declaring war on random countries thinking nothing of the consequences on his subjects, or their continued inability to get a decent night’s sleep lest they wake to yet another strange and unexpected act of the King’s madness that would ruin their entire day before breakfast, if not their life...
One morning, the Courtiers were summoned to a secret cavern in the lowest levels of the King’s Royal Halls, where a small indoor lake fed the moat of water surrounding the castle walls... A large hand carved wooden swan, the size of a boat suitable for two passengers to recline in comfort on gold satin pillows, floated languidly at the end of a short dock, carpeted in a plush red shag rug and supporting a length of violet velvet ropes, ensuring the safety of any guests on this tiny pier as they boarded the bobbing White Swan...
The King’s most trusted personal advisor and assistant gathered the Courtiers and told them King Ludwig had ordered this Swan Boat carved to entertain foreign and Royal Guests visiting the castle in private, and that even the King’s greatest seizures of madness might be abated and diffused by treating the King to an idyllic ride on his beloved Great Swan Ship, with various visiting Kings and tyrants accompanied by a live orchestral performance of one very specific movement from the ballet “Sleeping Beauty” by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky...