Pacific Northwest Ballet's historical Giselle - streaming

[Sebastian]

3 hours ago, Jeannette said:

My lone complaint about the PNB recon of Giselle, compared to the 2019 Bolshoi-Ratmansky version: no Fugue des Wilis in Act II, as at the Bolshoi (or the later Ukrainian-Ratmansky version, I’ve read)…but the PNB recon includes the drunken villagers episode in the middle of Act II, before Albrecht’s entrance. 

Thank you Jeannette, although it’s a rather busy time I am very much hoping to catch this. Do you happen to know who was responsible for the “historically-informing”, what they used and how they worked? Maybe there is a programme note online or such like? 

Since Marian Smith’s important 2000 publication “The Earliest Giselle” we have known about the répétiteur (annotated violin score) so together with the later Sergeyev/Stepanov materials there is a fair bit to draw on. Fascinating to see what use this company makes of the research. 

 

[Ivy Lin]

Is it very different from the Ratmansky version? I recently went to DC to see two performances of that version. The United Ukrainian Ballet dancers were wonderful!

[Jeannette]

The Giselle digital program notes/booklet can be accessed for free here (no need to purchase access to do that):

https://www.pnb.org/season/giselle/

 

@Sebastian, Doug Fullington and Marian Smith informed AD/choreographer Peter Boal, based on known notes (Justement, Stepanov, and one other). 
 

Having watched & “made notes” of both the PNB and Bolshoi- Ratmansky productions, the main differences are what I pointed out above, in A2:
 

Only PNB includes the “drunken villagers” scene right after Giselle joins the Wilis.

 

Only Ratmansky includes the Wilis’ Fugue in between the death of Hilarion and the main Albrecht-Giselle pdd.

 

Both PNB and Ratmansky-Bolshoi include the “old guys” scene at the beginning of A2, before Myrtha first appears.

 

Both PNB and Ratmansky-Bolshoi included the “Giselle forgives” end with Bathilde coming onto the scene before the curtain goes down.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited February 18, 2023 by Jeannette

[Sebastian]

Thank you very much Jeannette, this is most helpful. My particular interest is in detailed work on meaning, for example on the nature, amount and timing of the mime. How does this aspect compare to Ratmansky's work?

 

The digital program notes are informative. The répétiteur I mentioned (the Titus document you refer to as "one other") is described along with much else. Here is a small extract about it from the program notes (within copyright limits I hope) for the interest of people on the Forum who haven't read Marian Smith's original paper:-

 

The Titus manuscript. According to the Theatre Museum in St. Petersburg—where it is housed today— this 156-page manuscript (for violin and cello) was brought to Russia in 1842 by the ballet master Antoine Titus to aid him in the staging of Giselle in that city. Its great value lies in its copious annotations (in French), which describe the mime scenes, showing specifically how the action matched up to the music...Such annotations disclose not only what music and mime were intended for each other in Giselle in particular, but also open the door to understanding in general how composer and choreographer worked in complementary fashion to create Parisian ballets of this era. Indeed, every note, every phrase, every shift from loud to soft or major to minor is designed to provide the dancers with a vital resource for communicating the drama, moment to moment—a resource that is not always recognized today as such.

[Jeannette]

@Sebastian Thank you. I’ll forever remember the Titus document after this. Titus - Titus - Titus!!! 🤣 

 

I just rewatched the latest PNB stream - so sharp and clear! Even compared with the Ratmansky-Bolshoi version, these PNB designs by Jerome Kaplan take my prize of the most luxurious version ever rendered.  Perfection to my eyes!
 

I’m also in admiration for PNB’s soloists - Lesley Rausch is so vivacious as Giselle; no wilting Spesivitseva she! Moore’s entrechats as Albrecht, in his final “dance to death solo” are amazing! Elle Macy is strong, yet ethereal, as Myrtha…but I especially adore the brief solo of Zulma- Madison Rayn Abeo. Oh, my goodness! I’d love to see her ethereal, long-necked Giselle, some day.

Gorgeous spot-on corps, too. 

[Ivy Lin]

On 18/02/2023 at 03:58, Jeannette said:

The Giselle digital program notes/booklet can be accessed for free here (no need to purchase access to do that):

https://www.pnb.org/season/giselle/

 

@Sebastian, Doug Fullington and Marian Smith informed AD/choreographer Peter Boal, based on known notes (Justement, Stepanov, and one other). 
 

Having watched & “made notes” of both the PNB and Bolshoi- Ratmansky productions, the main differences are what I pointed out above, in A2:
 

Only PNB includes the “drunken villagers” scene right after Giselle joins the Wilis.

 

Only Ratmansky includes the Wilis’ Fugue in between the death of Hilarion and the main Albrecht-Giselle pdd.

 

Both PNB and Ratmansky-Bolshoi include the “old guys” scene at the beginning of A2, before Myrtha first appears.

 

Both PNB and Ratmansky-Bolshoi included the “Giselle forgives” end with Bathilde coming onto the scene before the curtain goes down.

 

 

 

Saw the stream today. One difference in choreography: PNB does the tabletop lift between Giselle and Albrecht, while Ratmansky does the more old-fashioned straight up and down lift.

In the series of carried arabesques in the grand pas de deux, PNB does the version where Giselle is carried backwards slightly before her arabesque, while Ratmansky does the pure arabesque.

Ratmansky does not include the "dance to the death" entrechats, while PNB does.

[alison]

Since this has involved into quite a discussion, I've converted a number of posts into this performance thread.

 

[Ivy Lin]

I'll add that I found Rausch a bit lacking as Giselle. She was fine with the allegro steps, but didn't seem to sustain the adagio poses very well, and would quickly move to the next pose.

[Sebastian]

Thanks for your reports Jeannette and Ivy Lin. I still haven’t yet managed to catch up with this recording so wondered if you had any comments in regard to what I asked earlier…

 

On 18/02/2023 at 13:44, Sebastian said:

My particular interest is in…the nature, amount and timing of the mime. How does this aspect compare to Ratmansky's work?

 

[Ivy Lin]

19 hours ago, Sebastian said:

Thanks for your reports Jeannette and Ivy Lin. I still haven’t yet managed to catch up with this recording so wondered if you had any comments in regard to what I asked earlier…

 

 

It's very similar but in general I liked the Bolshoi and Ukrainian Ballet's mime better. I didn't think the PNB's mime looked quite as natural.

[Geoff]

>>I didn't think the PNB's mime looked quite as natural.

 

Might I ask your view of how musical you found the mime? I ask because of this related discussion elsewhere on the Forum:

 

https://www.balletcoforum.com/topic/27071-music-and-action-in-classical-ballet-performance/

 

Edited February 25, 2023 by Geoff