Live tonight – Giselle

Giselle is an ethereal, timeless ballet about eternal love. In this ghost-filled tragedy, a beautiful young peasant girl falls for a disguised nobleman named Albrecht. When his identity is revealed by his rival, Hilarion a gamekeeper, Giselle loses her mind and dies of heartbreak. After her premature death, Giselle’s ghost protects her lover from the vengeance of a group of female spirits called Wilis.  The ballet is streamed live by Slippedisc, courtesy of OperaVision.

The libretto for Giselle was devised by Théophile Gautier, who combined one of his fairy tales, La Cafetière (1831), with the Germanic legend of the Wilis – fiancées who died on the eve of their wedding day – described in a poem by Heinrich Heine. The choreography was created by Jean Coralli, director of the Paris Opera, and Jules Perrot, dancer and partner of Carlotta Grisi, the first Giselle. The famous romantic ballet Giselle has yet to reveal all its secrets. And when it is set by matali crasset, one of the leading figures in contemporary design in France, the dance creates a kind of ethereal leap between tradition and modernity. In this new production streamed live from Opéra national de Bordeaux, the dancers’ gestures have not changed, nor have the romantic tutus. This eternal story simply continues in a new setting.  The role of Giselle is danced by Marini da Silva and Albrecht by Riku Ota.

The Plot: Act I 
Albrecht, Prince of Silesia, disguises himself as a villager to court peasant women, among them Giselle, with whom Hilarion, the gamekeeper, is in love. When Hilarion discovers the Prince’s identity, he denounces him, while Giselle is confronted by Albrecht’s fiancée, Bathilde a noble. Giselle, betrayed, loses her mind and dies.

Act II
In the forest at night, the Wilis, ghosts of young girls who died of love before their wedding day, mercilessly hunt down any male presence. Their queen, Myrtha, takes in Giselle and initiates her into the ritual of death. Their first victim is none other than Hilarion, then it’s Albrecht’s turn, whom Giselle manages to save by the strength of her love.

Live tonight at 2000 CET / 1900 London/ 1400 NY