Leap Into Action With Lipizzans

The Royal Lipizzaner Stallions are to regular horses as a Rolls-Royce is to a Pacer.

In the equestrian family, no stallion is finer, more distinctive, more prestigious and, um, more expensive.

The Lipizzan, a rare Spanish breed developed from the Andalusian stallion in Lipizza in the 16th century, is the elite of the elite.

Lipizzaner stallions, distinguished by their glowing snow-white coats, execute dressage maneuvers as gracefully as ballerinas and soar through the air as effortlessly as something one-third their size and weight. Their agility rivals that of a mountain lion. Further, Lipizzans exhibit discipline like a straight-A student.

You can witness these nimble dancers in action at the Spokane Arena on Saturday and Sunday or in Pullman on Friday.

The Lipizzan was bred by Austrian emperors as a battle horse. In fact, many of the maneuvers these stallions will execute at their Inland Northwest shows, such as rearing up on their hind legs or kicking out their hind legs, were actually used on the battlefield to thwart foot soldiers.

Because of the stallion’s strength, sturdiness and agility, the Lipizzan was a favorite of soldiers.

The strains of the Lipizzan date back over 2,000 years ago in Asia and Carthage. The predecessor of the Lipizzan is a Spanish horse known as the Andalusian, a combination of Carthaginian, Vilano, Arab and Barbary stocks. (Several Andalusian horses will be present in the show.)

Originally, the horse was reserved for nobility and military aristocracy.

Today, most of the world’s Lipizzaner stallions reside at the Spanish Riding School in Vienna, Austria. Most of the stallions used in the show come directly from the school.

The name of the show is “An Evening in Vienna,” honoring the Spanish Riding School. To mark the occasion, the show - different from the one that came to Spokane in 1994 - features all new music, choreography and routines.

Some of the maneuvers you can expect to see this weekend include the “Piaffe,” where the horse stands in one spot and performs a cadence trot; the “Airs Above the Ground,” a series of maneuvers where stallions soar through the air; the “Courbette,” where a horse balances on its hind legs, jumps into the air and lands with its hind legs together; and the amazing “Capriole,” where the horse whisks down the runway, leaps into the air, drawing its forelegs under its chest, and at the height of elevation, kicks out violently with its hind legs.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: The Royal Lipizzaner Stallions perform at the Spokane Arena Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. In Pullman, the stallions entertain at 8 p.m. Friday at the Beasley Performing Arts Arena. Tickets for Spokane and Pullman are available at all G&B Select-a-Seat outlets or by calling 325-SEAT.