Holiday Ballet Watchlist: Giselle

We couldn't have a ballet watchlist without Giselle!  Here is the full ballet performed a the Stanislavski and Nemirovich-Danchenko Moscow Academic Music Theatre.  Premiering in Paris in 1841, Giselle is a cornerstone of the romantic ballet tradition. The choreography was created by Jean Coralli and Jules Perrot, with music by Adolphe Adam. The ballet is admired for its emotional depth and its dramatic contrast between the earthly first act and the supernatural second act.

Giselle remains a defining role for ballerinas, demanding both technical brilliance and profound dramatic sensitivity.

Giselle is a young village girl who falls in love with Albrecht, unaware that he is a nobleman already promised to another. When the truth is revealed, Giselle dies of heartbreak. In the second act, she joins the Wilis, ghostly spirits of betrayed women who seek revenge on men. Giselle’s love, however, saves Albrecht from death, offering forgiveness beyond the grave.