ENB Mary Skeaping Giselle January 2024

[Irmgard]

12 hours ago, Emeralds said:

I agree- the audience missed a stunning double tour from Erik Woolhouse as Hilarion because it was in darkness. 

 

Also, the scene with the male peasants and Hilarion in the forest in front of and near Giselle's grave was so dark that a few audience members had to switch on their programmes to work out what was happening....an unfortunate consequence of saving on lighting! Less disruptive to have more lighting on the stage and less in the auditorium. They all missed Hilarion miming that he still loved Giselle and missed her. They could have a bit of light (not a powerful spotlight but dim ones) over Giselle's grave to suggest there's moonlight on it and one on the peasants to suggest their lamps are working. We'll still be able to discern the wilis frightening them in the dark.

 

I don't remember it being this dark in the last run. I thought perhaps it was my eyesight going with age (!) but the teen in our group with the robust eyesight of youth said, "no it isn't you- it's much too dark." Maybe someone at ENB could mention this to Mr Mohr to turn up the lighting a bit in this scene.....

The original lighting in 1971 was by Charles Bristowe and was recreated a few years later by David Mohr.  It is now under the supervision of ENB's chief lighting technician, David Richardson.  The lighting has always been quite dark at the beginning of Act 2 and then there is meant to be a special effect when the gamekeepers return, with the Wilis being lit from the waist up to give the illusion of flying around the gamekeepers.  However, the computer-led technology of the 21st century does not seem to be able to be as accurate as the traditional lighting board of the 20th century!

[Irmgard]

11 hours ago, Dawnstar said:

 

I didn't have a problem seeing the peasants on Friday, albeit I was sat front row stalls, but I was puzzled by their second appearance. I recall in the UUB production them being there at the start but not their reappearance being chased later by the wilis, while I don't recall them at all in the RB production. Is this my memory being useless or do they make an extra appearance in this production? It seems a bit much having not only Hilarion but also half a dozen other men killed in a single night!

 

Still no cast list up for this afternoon. I'm on a train to London in the hope Oliveira & Frola are indeed on but I haven't yet bought a ticket in case they're not. I really hope there will still be tickets available by the time the cast is confirmed.

The second appearance of the gamekeepers is in Adam's original score (and there are wonderful stage direction notes in the 1842 piano reduction of that) and was reinstated by Mary Skeaping (long after it had been jettisoned in Russian productions) to reinforce Heine's point that the Wilis are out for revenge on any man who crosses their path, not just those who have wronged women!  Never fear, the gamekeepers are not killed but are just used for sport by the Wilis!  In fact, in the original scenario (and Skeaping's original 1953 production), they were actually a different group of men (villagers returning from a party), accompanied by an older man who, realising they are becoming enthralled by these beautiful creatures whom he recognises as Wilis, tells them all to flee.  Skeaping probably changed it to the same group of men in her 1971 production for budgetary reasons (i.e. not so many costumes to make!), as well as a tighter storyline.

[Irmgard]

6 hours ago, Jamesrhblack said:

I booked this Giselle for the production rather than any particular dancers, having seen the Skeaping version nearly forty years ago when I knew much less than the little I know of the historical background of the ballet, and then again in 2017 when I was so flummoxed by an unexpectedly disappointing performance from a highly regarded dancer that my memory is of that rather than anything else.

 

Having seen the current RB Peter Wright production many times, it wasn’t until I saw Ratmansky’s production as danced by United Ukrainian Ballet that I realised that there were other possibly preferable solutions to the challenges posed. It may be that I enjoyed that as a production even more than today, but I was very pleased to have an opportunity properly to appreciate this classic production from an excellent, if leg-restricted, seat in the front centre of the Upper CIrcle.

 

As with Ratmansky, it was good to hear the fuller version of the score, which is what I grew up on as my father had the Bonynge Monte-Carlo LP’s. Others better informed than I will be able to comment more appropriately but two details particularly caught my eye.

 

In Act 1, as Giselle sought reassurance from Albrecht (or rather Loys) in front of Bathilde, rather than meeting her eye his gaze was locked on Hilarion who had penetrated his disguise. At that moment, Giselle “knew.” This tiny anticipation of the truth, precipitating her breakdown, was really striking.

 

The other was in Act 2 when Giselle lures an exhausted Albrecht back to the dance. Is somebody able to explain for me the intent? It read to me as Giselle saying, “Remember, I love to dance,” her inner Wili surfacing, but it could equally have meant, “Remember, I love you. Now dance,” which isn’t quite the same thing.

 

I thought Fernanda Oliveira exquisite, although I remarked to my companion at the interval that she seemed very fragile. I’m not sure whether that was her characterisation or a symptom of the indisposition that took her out of her first performance and out of the Second Act today. The gentleness, but also the coquetry were there, and her Giselle visibly grew in confidence in her relationship with Loys, making her betrayal very poignant.

 

Again, might somebody who knows better advise as to whether her modification of the hopping sequence in the Act 1 Solo is Skeaping or a very effective alteration necessitated by her weakened health (I’m also sure that Laura Morera took this sequence on the other side and foot).

 

Kudos to Erina Takahashi for saving the show with a new partner, minimal notice and no doubt whilst in anticipated recovery mode after dancing last night. Her technique seems more obviously steely and brilliant than Oliveira’s making for some thrilling moments of height and flight, yet beautifully softened in the Pas de deux. I wish that over the years I had come to know more of both these evidently very accomplished ballerinas.

 

I didn’t get a lot of sense of emotional involvement from Francesco Gabriele Frola, nor did I think he strung his Act 2 solo into a sequence rather than individual moments (I’m not sure how better to express this), but those moments were certainly impressive.

 

The extended version of Myrtha’s entrance, so akin to the 19th Century Recitative-Aria-Link-Cabaletta is thrilling to behold. I didn’t find Alison McWhinney as baleful or menacing as memory still tells me Monica Mason was, but she sure can jump and her stamina was impressive too. In terms of lighting, I thought a couple of moments were the darker side of atmospheric, but Myrtha leaping through the ranks of the Foresters was terrific.
 

Unqualified praise for the ladies of the Corp de Ballet in Act 2, never betraying any sense of the exhaustion they must surely be feeling at the end of the week (again, can somebody explain to me the significance of the heads facing over the shoulder and out during the travelling arabesques in opposition rather than looking down) and just about for the orchestra too, apart from a couple of horn fluffs, under Daniel Parkinson’s fluent baton, without any of the over slow tempi that seem to plague The Royal Ballet’s musical response.

 

I really enjoyed it very much and hope it won’t be too long before this beautiful production returns.

In the section you refer to in Act 2, Myrtha commands Giselle to get Albrecht up after he has fallen to the ground.  The mime Giselle says is "You remember how we loved and how we danced" in the hope that this will get him to his feet again, as she knows she must keep him dancing until dawn or the Wilis will kill him.  The beautiful supported series of temps levées following his next solo are again to keep him moving.

 

The sharp-eyed in today's audience may have noticed a slight limping by Oliveira towards the end of the mad scene and this is unfortunately why she had to withdraw from the rest of the ballet, as she had a problem with her calf which sadly prevented us from seeing her beautifully ethereal Act 2.  Heartfelt thanks to Erina Takahashi for taking over!   

 

In Giselle's first Act 1 solo (she has two in the Skeaping production), there is an alternative to the diagonal of hops which Oliveira did today and Khaniukova did on Thursday and Friday which I actually prefer as it makes this interpolated solo (from around 1880) slightly more Romantic in feel and less of a show-off number. And yes, dancers who choose to do the whole sequence of hops can use either diagonal,  for whichever supporting leg is stronger.

 

Myrtha does not have to appear baleful or menacing in her first solo.  Wilis, when mortal, had an overwhelming love of dance, and, in death, this passion is indulged.  Therefore, this solo (longer in the Skeaping version than in any other because it uses Adam's music for this almost in its entirety) is meant to portray this passion, building to an almost ecstatic climax, and is what Gautier intended.  Myrtha becomes menacing only when confronting potential male victims.  

 

In the 'travelling arabesques' (a much nicer description than Alistair Macaulay's reference to them as cow-hops!), the Wilis look to the audience to indicate that they hypnotise/seduce their potential victims with their beautiful eyes.  Therefore, the arms are in third arabesque, rather than first, to allow the head to turn to the audience.

[Irmgard]

6 hours ago, Lizbie1 said:

 

I doubt that we're talking about the same dancer but you've reminded me that I was meaning to be brave about this after I'd seen the production again.

 

This all comes with the caveat that I only saw her once in Giselle and it was in this ENB 2017 run. I don't know how representative this is of her Giselle in general, or in this production or in the later part of her career, but I didn't love Cojocaru in the role.

 

I should make clear that this had nothing to do with technique but was down to characterisation. One thing in particular sticks with me: while the peasant pas de deux was going on Cojocaru made a circuit of the onlookers, to show them her new necklace. I thought this wasn't just bad stage manners - quite distracting for the audience - but would have been bad manners in Giselle the character. For me it tipped Giselle over into the wrong kind of childish (over-indulged and perhaps simple-minded) and coloured the whole thing for me.

 

I'm bringing it up on this thread because people have mentioned her above as an exemplary Giselle and I'd like to know if seeing her earlier would have shown me something else - those who've seen her throughout her career might have an interesting perspective. Also, I like to see minority opinions aired so I shouldn't just leave it to others to be brave.

 

I should probably delete my account now!

Sadly, Cojocaru did not embrace the Skeaping production.

[Irmgard]

1 hour ago, Dawnstar said:

This is ramblings rather than a proper review. Warning: I am probably hopelessly biased towards Frola, as he's been one of my favourite dancers since I first saw him in Manon 5 seasons ago.

 

Well, after 2 attempts in under 48 hours to see Oliveira & Frola it three-quarters worked! I'm very glad I made a second attempt as I'd been looking forward to seeing Frola as Albrecht for months & he was worth the wait. I didn't get round to posting anything on here about Friday's cast but I felt that Arrieta, while he gave a decent performance, came over as rather too nice in most of Act I to be plausible as a two-timing cad. I thought Frola managed to find significantly more acting nuances indicating that he was playing with the situation & was not being entirely sincere with Giselle and then more emotional depth in Albrecht's unmasking & witnessing of Giselle's madness & death. His dancing was, as always, wonderful in my opinion. I'm very pleased that Giselle & Albrecht get the extra Act I pdd. I thought his Act II solo was glorious, I had tears in my eyes from the sheer quality of the jumps. I don't know if it was because I was seeing them from different angles but there was one jump during the solo that looked different & more spectacular than what Arrieta did. I don't know the name of the jump but when Albrecht comes downstage towards Myrtha and does three up-and-round jumps en route my far-right-edge of the stalls seat was at the perfect angle to see it. I wish Adam had written far more music for the dance to near-death as I didn't want Frola to stop!

 

It's not possible to fully judge today's Giselles with them doing only an act each. I thought Oliveira was very good in Act I and it was a great pity she was unable to show the rest of her portrayal. I suppose I'll never see her do a full Giselle now. I wouldn't have guessed she was ill from her performance, though admittedly as Giselle goes mad possibly playing a distraught character could hide potential signs of illness. I'm getting very confused by the Act I hops. It looked to me like Oliveira did more of them than Khaniukova did but neither did as many as I feel I've seen previously & I thought Cojocaru did more but then someone mentioned upthread that Ratmansky's production doesn't include then. Another good moment from my viewing angle was that as Albrecht has to take Bathilde's hand Giselle was framed between them before she ran to break them apart. I thought Takahashi did very well in Act II under the circumstances but unfortunately I found it difficult to feel as much emotional connection with her Giselle given we hadn't seen first her pleasure and then her suffering & death previously. Considering she & Frola had presumably not rehearsed together I thought they worked very well together in general. The only slight indication of lack of rehearsal that I spotted was shen he was kneeling down & she bourreed over to him and as she got there & reached for his shoulder the distance seemed to be a bit wrong & her hand bumped into his shoulder rather than the presumably intended feather-light touch. Maybe it's a good thing this production doesn't have the big balance lift though given the circumstances. As the veil was whisked off Giselle, I thought that it could have been rather amusing if the cast change hadn't been announced & they'd left it for the audience to find out at the unveiling! (Yes, I know unprofessional & would never happen.)

 

Getting to see McWhinney, who was my first Manon 5 years ago, was a bonus. I thought she was very good, especially considering it's her first role back from maternity leave, but I felt Suzuki on Friday was a bit better inherently suited to the role. I was glad I liked Dowden as Hilarion, as he was the only lead cast member who appeared in both his scheduled performances. (A thought that came into my mind during Hilarion's first appearance today: was the Medieval equivalent of Say It With Flowers, Say It With Pheasants?!)

 

When the casting was first announced my first choice cast was Oliveira/Frola & my second choice cast Khaniukova/Arrieta however the way their dates worked out I would have had to see the former pair first and then the latter pair. Based on last year's Swan Lake, where I saw Arrieta & then Frola and was very pleased to have seen them in that order on the save-the-best-til-last principle, I didn't want to do that, plus I was broke at the time casting was announced so I decided to just book for the one cast. Ironically all the cast issues ended up with me being able to see Arrieta & Frola in that order! And yes, again it was definitely the best last.

 

I don't know if more expert ballet-viewers will agree but in my opinion if you have to see Giselle from a restricted view seat then auditorium right is definitely the side to go for.

Skeaping went back to Gautier's original conception of Albrecht not as a cad but as a young man caught between two loves (a very Romantic notion).  Indeed Gautier in his musings has Albrecht wonder why he cannot marry them both!  Skeaping therefore reinstated the complete pas de deux for Giselle and Albrecht in Act 1 (Pas des Vendanges) and, as far as I am aware, is the only choreographer/producer to have done so, as it is really an expression of their love for each other.  Of course, it is up to the individual as to whether they portray Albrecht as totally smitten with Giselle or as a pleasure-seeking cad, but I know which one Skeaping preferred! 

[Jan McNulty]

@Irmgard thank you so much for all the details you have given us about Mary Skeaping's Giselle.  It is my favourite production of Giselle and I am devastated I can't make it down to London for this run.  Reading your erudite posts makes me hope against hope that this production is revived very soon (and preferably at a time when I can get to see it).

[Jamesrhblack]

7 hours ago, Irmgard said:

In the section you refer to in Act 2, Myrtha commands Giselle to get Albrecht up after he has fallen to the ground.  The mime Giselle says is "You remember how we loved and how we danced" in the hope that this will get him to his feet again, as she knows she must keep him dancing until dawn or the Wilis will kill him.  The beautiful supported series of temps levées following his next solo are again to keep him moving.

 

The sharp-eyed in today's audience may have noticed a slight limping by Oliveira towards the end of the mad scene and this is unfortunately why she had to withdraw from the rest of the ballet, as she had a problem with her calf which sadly prevented us from seeing her beautifully ethereal Act 2.  Heartfelt thanks to Erina Takahashi for taking over!   

 

In Giselle's first Act 1 solo (she has two in the Skeaping production), there is an alternative to the diagonal of hops which Oliveira did today and Khaniukova did on Thursday and Friday which I actually prefer as it makes this interpolated solo (from around 1880) slightly more Romantic in feel and less of a show-off number. And yes, dancers who choose to do the whole sequence of hops can use either diagonal,  for whichever supporting leg is stronger.

 

Myrtha does not have to appear baleful or menacing in her first solo.  Wilis, when mortal, had an overwhelming love of dance, and, in death, this passion is indulged.  Therefore, this solo (longer in the Skeaping version than in any other because it uses Adam's music for this almost in its entirety) is meant to portray this passion, building to an almost ecstatic climax, and is what Gautier intended.  Myrtha becomes menacing only when confronting potential male victims.  

 

In the 'travelling arabesques' (a much nicer description than Alistair Macaulay's reference to them as cow-hops!), the Wilis look to the audience to indicate that they hypnotise/seduce their potential victims with their beautiful eyes.  Therefore, the arms are in third arabesque, rather than first, to allow the head to turn to the audience.

 

Many thanks Iemgard. This is so useful and interesting to know and I really appreciate your taking the time to explain.

[Lizbie1]

7 hours ago, Irmgard said:

Sadly, Cojocaru did not embrace the Skeaping production.

 

It's interesting that Peter Wright had a similar tale.

[zxDaveM]

14 hours ago, Lizbie1 said:

I'm bringing it up on this thread because people have mentioned her above as an exemplary Giselle and I'd like to know if seeing her earlier would have shown me something else - those who've seen her throughout her career might have an interesting perspective. Also, I like to see minority opinions aired so I shouldn't just leave it to others to be brave.

 

I should probably delete my account now!

 

On Cojocaru: in the RB production, I remember one time during the 'mad scene', she looked out into the audience whilst plucking the imaginary petals, and a tear rolled down her cheek. That just set me off, I can't deny.

Oh - and don't you dare delete your account! 🙂

[zxDaveM]

21 hours ago, Emeralds said:

I don't remember it being this dark in the last run. I thought perhaps it was my eyesight going with age (!) but the teen in our group with the robust eyesight of youth said, "no it isn't you- it's much too dark." Maybe someone at ENB could mention this to Mr Mohr to turn up the lighting a bit in this scene.....

 

After setting the scene at the start of act 2, I don't see why the lighting has to vary so widely as to make some scenes too dark to actually see. A minor niggle I guess, but a distraction all the same

[zxDaveM]

15 hours ago, Pas de Quatre said:

When I was performing as a professional ballet dancer it was normal for management to tell dancers that if they sunbathed during the summer and got a tan then they would have to use white makeup on exposed arms, shoulders for Giselle, Swan Lake etc. Water soluble pan cake did the trick.

 

yes, 'ghostly' wilis, swans, night-time nymphs etc, with a healthy tan from a well spent summer, hardly convinces! lol

[LinMM]

Sorry just for clarity’s sake does “sadly  Cojocaru did not embrace the Skeaping Production” mean that she didn’t actually appear in it or she wanted to change certain things within it? 

[zxDaveM]

11 hours ago, Buru said:

My only true regret of today was the replacement of Giselle for E Takahashi in Act II. Neither I nor my guests who saw Giselle for the first time enjoyed her interpretation or dancing, sorry to be so direct about it. Very unfortunate that Oliveira was unable to finish the performance.

 

Yes, very unfortunate for Oliveira but I think you're being very harsh on Takahashi. She had danced superbly the night before, and stepped in at the last moment with a different partner for act 2. Hats off to her. Your alternative was to end the show after act 1

[zxDaveM]

1 minute ago, LinMM said:

Sorry just for clarity’s sake does “sadly  Cojocaru did not embrace the Skeaping Production” mean that she didn’t actually appear in it or she wanted to change certain things within it? 

 

she definitely appeared in it (there is a clip on the ENB website) and I've seen her dance it. Perhaps she just didn't enjoy performing this production; there may be things in it (or things not in it) that did not play to her strengths

[Irmgard]

22 minutes ago, LinMM said:

Sorry just for clarity’s sake does “sadly  Cojocaru did not embrace the Skeaping Production” mean that she didn’t actually appear in it or she wanted to change certain things within it? 

She danced in it in 2017 but was not interested in embracing many of the elements unique to Skeaping's production, unlike last-minute guest artist Jurgita Dronina who was keen to embrace all of them.

[LinMM]

It’s just that I’m sure one of her performances I saw was in this Production but can never quite trust my memory lol especially since Covid it seems to have added a few years onto past events!! 
 

[Emeralds]

9 hours ago, Irmgard said:

The original lighting in 1971 was by Charles Bristowe and was recreated a few years later by David Mohr.  It is now under the supervision of ENB's chief lighting technician, David Richardson.  The lighting has always been quite dark at the beginning of Act 2 and then there is meant to be a special effect when the gamekeepers return, with the Wilis being lit from the waist up to give the illusion of flying around the gamekeepers.  However, the computer-led technology of the 21st century does not seem to be able to be as accurate as the traditional lighting board of the 20th century!

I knew it!- I was beginning to suspect it was a computer related issue when something that worked well before and shouldn't have changed now looks odd. I do prefer traditional things myself too, like the traditional lighting board. 

 

Hope Mr Richardson can reset or reprogramme some of it so that audiences can see the gamekeepers and Hilarion a little better. The issue (certainly from 2 different seats I've had near or at the front) is mostly to do with any scene or mime involving Hilarion not being clearly visible. I could follow it and pick out Hilarion's mime and jumps in the darkness, but many people around me, who didnt know what they were supposed to be looking for,  could not- and several ended up switching on their phones (what I observed and what I was told) to be able to read what was going on; that's how dark it was in some parts of the upper circle and dress circle. 

 

Irmgard, a big thanks and bouquets 💐  💐  to you for answering all these questions so patiently and giving us in effect a very informative digital workshop on the ballet and this historic production. What a treat for us all! Incidentally I first knew about this production from a ballet book for children published in the 1980s singling out "Mary Skeaping's production for London Festival Ballet" as a "charming and traditional" production (their words, and they didn't highlight any other company's production!) complete with a photo of the company in Act 1. It looked so beautiful that I resolved that when I was older I would look for it and attend a performance (or severa!) if it was still being performed. And here we are in 2024, and it still looks as beautiful and charming in the dancing, choreography and designs as it did years ago in that photo. ENB must cherish and revive this production frequently- it's so rare and glorious. (Oh, by the way, my friend who came along to one of the performances said it was so beautiful that she had tears at the end.....which didn't happen with another production by a major ballet company that she attended.)

Edited January 15 by Emeralds

[LinMM]

Sorry my above post was in reply to Dave’s Post 

Thankyou Irmgard that’s interesting. 
I’m never really sure how much freedom dancers get when invited to dance with a Company but I would have thought unless a very last minute  invitation that as a dancer you try to fit in with that Company’s version. 

I still enjoyed her in this role though I think sometimes when you attend performances for some reason something special just happens between yourself and a particular performance especially with ballets you may have seen many times. You are just particularly open to it all on that night. Obviously the performances of the dancers have to be on that top notch level but combined can just make a magical evening that you remember for a long time. 
When I was choosing my “top 5”

Giselles” up thread it’s because those evenings had this particular magical quality as I know of course that many dancers are wonderful in this role often because it is one of their coveted roles to dance. 
 

[Geoff]

33 minutes ago, Irmgard said:

She danced in it in 2017 but was not interested in embracing many of the elements unique to Skeaping's production, unlike last-minute guest artist Jurgita Dronina who was keen to embrace all of them.

 

My memory of seeing her dance Giselle twice in the 2017 run is that she was wonderful (in fact I discussed this with Tamara Rojo). But if you say she chose not to use "many" "unique" "elements" it would be most interesting to know more, can you remember some specific examples?

[Buru]

12 minutes ago, zxDaveM said:

 

Yes, very unfortunate for Oliveira but I think you're being very harsh on Takahashi. She had danced superbly the night before, and stepped in at the last moment with a different partner for act 2. Hats off to her. Your alternative was to end the show after act 1

I totally agree and grateful to the forum for all the comments and explanations, it did help to soften my impression of the performance. Of course, we’re always grateful to the artists who step in at a difficult hour but apart from the gratitude for doing so, I wish I (and, more importantly, my young guests who saw Giselle for the first time) had actually enjoyed it a bit more. This is the ballet that made me cry and ‘fly’ more than once, so I know that it can elicit very deep emotions when performed right. 

[Sim]

1 hour ago, Buru said:

I totally agree and grateful to the forum for all the comments and explanations, it did help to soften my impression of the performance. Of course, we’re always grateful to the artists who step in at a difficult hour but apart from the gratitude for doing so, I wish I (and, more importantly, my young guests who saw Giselle for the first time) had actually enjoyed it a bit more. This is the ballet that made me cry and ‘fly’ more than once, so I know that it can elicit very deep emotions when performed right. 

It certainly can.  One of the only times I have ever seen my hubby cry was at the end of a Cojocaru/Kobborg Giselle at the ROH.  When she danced the role with Kobborg it was something highly emotional and very special.  Subsequent to that it might have been different, but I chose not to see her dance it with anyone else.  

 

I agree with Dave:  it's almost unfair to pass negative judgement on a dancer who had danced the entire role less than 24 hours previously, who had stepped in with no notice to dance with someone she had never danced with before, almost no time to warm up her body, no Act 1 to get into her role and establish a relationship with Albrecht, no time to put on any makeup to help the characterisation, and virtually no time to rehearse any of the steps or lifts with Frola.  Under these circumstances, I think she did a great job....and so did he, having to adjust from one Giselle to another, one he didn't really know. 

[LinMM]

Indeed it can Buru. It can definitely make magical moments in time. 
But then I’ve always loved Giselle particularly and know the music so well now that if the sound is turned off on videos of dancers performing it I can supply the correct music …mostly lol! 
 However I might be a bit flummoxed by this Skeaping version as it has the extra music in the second Act which I like but am less familiar with. 

Please ENB bring Giselle back in 2-3 years not 7 as last time!!  

[Pas de Quatre]

Yes please bring it back - to other theatres, not just in London!

[alison]

42 minutes ago, Sim said:

It certainly can.  One of the only times I have ever seen my hubby cry was at the end of a Cojocaru/Kobborg Giselle at the ROH.  When she danced the role with Kobborg it was something highly emotional and very special. 

 

Although, prior to that, I very much liked Kobborg with Tamara Rojo.  Or with Miyako Yoshida, for that matter.  But then, he is down as one of my favourite Albrechts anyway.  Which reminds me ...

[Roberta]

I'd also like to add my voice of thanks to @Irmgard for taking all the time to clarify & expand on Mary Skeaping's production and her intentions. I did see it way back when it was new, with LFB, and it made a lasting impression. It's wonderful it is still being performed in 2024. Mary Skeaping's contribution to dance, dance scholarship  and dance history was immense and should not be forgotten. Alongside her dancing, then research and reconstructions, she also taught Cecchetti ballet and was one of those who participated in the demonstration of the first attempts to formalise the 'method' exercises for exams, a new concept at the time.    https://cicb.org/the-early-days/

 

She was one of the very earliest holders of the Maestro Cecchetti Diploma. 

 

 

[Emeralds]

1 hour ago, Buru said:

I totally agree and grateful to the forum for all the comments and explanations, it did help to soften my impression of the performance. Of course, we’re always grateful to the artists who step in at a difficult hour but apart from the gratitude for doing so, I wish I (and, more importantly, my young guests who saw Giselle for the first time) had actually enjoyed it a bit more. This is the ballet that made me cry and ‘fly’ more than once, so I know that it can elicit very deep emotions when performed right. 

Buru, you know what this means of course....you're just going to have to book another performance for yourself and your young guests....next weekend's Saturday  and Sunday matinees still have some tickets available. 😀  (I have to add that it is very unusual for Fernanda Oliveira not to be able to finish a performance. It has been an unlucky Giselle run for her and her partner.)

[Fonty]

10 hours ago, Irmgard said:

In the section you refer to in Act 2, Myrtha commands Giselle to get Albrecht up after he has fallen to the ground.  The mime Giselle says is "You remember how we loved and how we danced" in the hope that this will get him to his feet again, as she knows she must keep him dancing until dawn or the Wilis will kill him.  The beautiful supported series of temps levées following his next solo are again to keep him moving.

 

Myrtha does not have to appear baleful or menacing in her first solo.  Wilis, when mortal, had an overwhelming love of dance, and, in death, this passion is indulged.  Therefore, this solo (longer in the Skeaping version than in any other because it uses Adam's music for this almost in its entirety) is meant to portray this passion, building to an almost ecstatic climax, and is what Gautier intended.  Myrtha becomes menacing only when confronting potential male victims.  

 

 

Thank you very much for this.  As a matter of interest, how are the Wilis supposed to kill their victims?  I have always thought that they literally danced their victims to death (similar to the fate of the chosen one in the Rite of Spring).  My practical mind wonders about these details.  They have marked similarities to vampires, so perhaps they are supposed to suck his blood?  Or do they just swarm over him and tear him to pieces?  Either way my mind is producing Hammer Horror images.....

 

Also, I have always felt so sorry for Hilarion.  He has done nothing wrong other than genuinely love Giselle.  

[LinMM]

My own main teacher was indebted to Margaret Craske he told us. I wonder if he knew Mary Skeaping as well. 

[Roberta]

1 minute ago, LinMM said:

My own main teacher was indebted to Margaret Craske he told us. I wonder if he knew Mary Skeaping as well. 

 

Margaret Craske herself had a very interesting life,  though this is not the thread for her history she also played a major role in ballet history and her name should not be forgotten. 

[LinMM]

Yes it seems the Wilis from this Romantic era were obviously far more vicious than I thought then as assumed Death was via Dance!! 
Though probably a horrible way to die in reality!!! 

[Irmgard]

17 minutes ago, Fonty said:

 

Thank you very much for this.  As a matter of interest, how are the Wilis supposed to kill their victims?  I have always thought that they literally danced their victims to death (similar to the fate of the chosen one in the Rite of Spring).  My practical mind wonders about these details.  They have marked similarities to vampires, so perhaps they are supposed to suck his blood?  Or do they just swarm over him and tear him to pieces?  Either way my mind is producing Hammer Horror images.....

 

Also, I have always felt so sorry for Hilarion.  He has done nothing wrong other than genuinely love Giselle.  

😂 to your Hammer Horror images! Yes, the Wilis are supposed to dance their victims to death but, so that we do not have poor Hilarion's corpse onstage for the rest of Act 2, he is chased out of the glade and falls into the pond and drowns because of his exhaustion (slight artistic licence here as we cannot magic up the water splashing as he hits it!).  I, too, feel sorry for Hilarion, especially as in this production he is a nice guy, understandably concerned for Giselle although obviously jealous of Albrecht.  However, that is the way of the Wilis- they are out to avenge themselves on any man, guilty or not!

[Irmgard]

22 minutes ago, LinMM said:

My own main teacher was indebted to Margaret Craske he told us. I wonder if he knew Mary Skeaping as well. 

Mary Skeaping also studied with Margaret Craske and taught at her studio in West Street, taking it over with Peggy van Praagh when Craske departed for an ashram in India at the start of World War 2 before settling in the USA. 

[alison]

18 hours ago, alison said:

Oh dear, I do sympathise (more of which when I'm on a computer). 

 

As promised, a digression from the Skeaping production: Derek Deane's, of not such blessed memory   (actually, I rather liked the somewhat vampiric Wilis in the second act, but updating the action to the early 1900s, with Giselle's mother running a hotel and Albrecht arriving in a motor car - with his sword stowed in the boot - didn't really work!).

 

Anyway, some context: back in the 80s, I saw some rave reviews of Patrick Armand (together with Trinidad Sevillano) guesting in Giselle at Sadler's Wells with Northern Ballet Theatre, as I think they were at the time (I remember a gorgeous black-and-white photo of them in the role in Dance and Dancers).  I was kicking myself for missing it, and even more so when they both upped sticks to Boston Ballet for about a decade.   He rejoined ENB round about the turn of the century (boy, that makes me feel old), and they were touring the Deane production to, I think, 3 venues outside London, and he was supposed to be dancing Albrecht.  Only he got injured.  The internet was still in its infancy, and there was no social media to keep us updated on casting, although I think ENB did find some way of doing it.  One venue went by - still injured - and the next - yep, still out - and I actually rang ENB to confirm that he would be dancing in the last venue, Bristol, but of course only an evening performance (the last coach back was pre-6 pm, and there was a late train at somewhere around 9.30 - the station being a long way away from the theatre - which would get me back to London in time to get across London for my very last train home).  But at least it was the day of the matinee, so I could go to that as well and make it worth my while, and then stay on with a cheap seat for Act I in the evening.  At the last minute, I discovered that Great Western were re-scheduled for that evening and that the train was about 20 minutes later than usual, so I did unexpectedly get to see about half of Act II as well before I had to leave   Anyway, what I saw was enough to put him among my three favourite Albrechts - all, coincidentally, from round about the same time: Irek Mukhamedov, Johan Kobborg, and him.  (I think his Giselle may have been Takahashi, in a very early performance, but may be confusing that with something else)

 

Anyway, this rather longwinded story is simply to say that that's why I really sympathise with Dawnstar attempting to catch Frola's Albrecht!