Late at night in a dark forest, Hilarion mourns at Giselle's grave but is frightened away by the impending arrival of the Wilis. As midnight strikes, Myrtha (Natalia Pasiut), their merciless queen, leads their nightly dance ritual before rousing Giselle's spirit from her grave.
Giselle, which was first performed in 1841 in Paris (and in Warsaw in 1848), is the ultimate romantic ballet, a product of the French romantics longing for an idealised female presence on the ballet stage. This vision set a standard for all the romantic ballets to come. Having women dance en pointe was meant to serve this very purpose; an impressive dance technique inspiring great art, putting the revered female figure at its centre. For this 2022 production, Polish National Ballet have meticulously recreated their designs from 1968 and 1976 by the late Andrzej Kreutz Majewski, whose sets and costumes excellently convey the romantic atmosphere of the French masterpiece. Based on the canonical choreography by Marius Petipa, the production is overseen by Maina Gielgud, once a star of European ballet stages, later the head of the Australian Ballet and Royal Danish Ballet. Danced by some of the greatest ballerinas of all time, Giselle is pastoral charm, touching drama, and ephemerality to savour at Christmas on OperaVision.
Streamed on OperaVision on 26 December 2022 at 15:00 CET and available until 26 June 2023:
CAST
Giselle - a young peasant girl
Chinara Alizade
Duke Albrecht of Silesia - in disguise as peasant Loys
Vladimir Yaroshenko
Hilarion - gamekeeper in love with Giselle
Kristóf Szabó
Wilfried - menservant of Duke Albrecht
Carlos Martín Pérez
Prince of Courtland
Wojciech Ślęzak
Bathilde - his dauther and Duke Albrecht’s fiancée
Irina Wasilewska
Berthe - mother of Giselle
Marta Fiedler
Peasant Pas de deux
Mai Kageyama
Diogo de Oliveira
Myrtha - the queen of the Willis
Natalia Pasiut
Willi 1.
Yume Okano
Willi 2.
Mai Kageyama
Ballet
Polish National Ballet
Orchestra
Polish National Opera Orchestra
Music
Adolphe Adam
Choreography
Jean Coralli
Jules Perrot
Director
Maina Gielgud
Conductor
Patrick Fournillier
Sets and costumes
Andrzej Kreutz Majewski
Set design adaptation
Małgorzata Szabłowska
Costume design adaptation
Katarzyna Rott
Lighting
Maciej Igielski
Film director
Ewa Krasucka
Sound
Emilian Rymarowicz
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