ALL THE PRETTY HORSES

By EMILY MITCHELL

On a frosty January evening, a thousand people are waiting in line outside a wooden amphitheater in the Paris suburb of Aubervilliers. When the great barn doors swing open, the crowd pushes inside to fill plywood benches surrounding an arena of sand. This is the Theatre Equestre Zingaro, one part theater, one part choreography and one part a celebration of the mystical union between horse and human.

Scenes and dreamlike visions inspired by India leave spectators spellbound. Beside a shallow pool at the ring's center, a young woman gentles a skittery gray horse, their reflections glimmering on the water's turquoise surface. An original score alternates with centuries-old rhythms played by Rajasthani musicians; performers leap daringly on steeds at full gallop. A horse and a black-robed rider are motionless in the pool, then vanish into darkness. The horseman is Bartabas, 37, the trainer and impresario who presides over the troupe of 45 people and 28 horses, including Zingaro, the black stallion for whom the theater is named.

Since founding Theatre Zingaro in 1984, Bartabas has put together five shows. Chimere, the current one, has won critical praise and played to 150,000 people since opening in Germany last May. The Aubervilliers run ends Feb. 26 so Bartabas can direct a film in Russia; in May it begins a seven- month run in Europe, then returns to Paris. In choosing performers and horses, Bartabas seeks personality more than mere skill. ``I meet horses and respond to their charm,'' he says. ``Then I look at what they are like, what I can draw out of them--this one's seriousness, that one's grace.'' Theatre Zingaro requires a near religious dedication. Company members are with the horses night and day, sleeping at a campsite in Gypsy caravans. Says Bartabas: ``It's a way of life.''

Horses have always held a supreme place in human imagination. In ancient myths they pulled the chariot of the sun across the sky. According to Hindu belief, the world will end when a white horse, actually the final incarnation of the deity Vishnu, stamps the earth with his hoof. At Theatre Zingaro the horse and not the rider appears to have mastery. ``Man may be more intelligent,'' says Bartabas, ``but horses are far more perceptive. Horses have taught me everything.'' Reported by Victoria Foote-Greenwell/Aubervilliers