Mariinsky “Giselle” @ the Ken-Cen

Feb 8 – 13, 2011

Giselle

Choreography: Jean Coralli & Jules Perrot
Arrangement and addition choreography by Marius Petipa
Music: Adolphe Adam

PRINCIPAL CASTING

Tue., Feb. 8 at 7:30 p.m.
Giselle: Diana Vishneva
Alberth: Andrian Fadeyev
Hanz: Yuri Smekalov
Mirtha: Ekaterina Kondaurova

Wed., Feb. 9 at 7:30 p.m.
Giselle: Alina Somova (cast change on 1/12)
Alberth: Evgeny Ivanchenko (cast change on 1/12)
Hanz: Konstantin Zverev
Mirtha: Alexandra Iosifidi

Thu., Feb. 10 at 7:30 p.m.
Giselle: Viktoria Tereshkina (cast change on 1/12)
Alberth: Vladimir Shklyarov (cast change on 1/12)
Hanz: Yuri Smekalov
Mirtha: Ekaterina Kondaurova

Fri., Feb. 11 at 7:30 p.m.
Giselle: Alina Somova (cast change on 1/12)
Alberth: Evgeny Ivanchenko (cast change on 1/12)
Hanz: Konstantin Zverev
Mirtha: Alexandra Iosifidi

Sat., Feb. 12 at 1:30 p.m.
Giselle: Viktoria Tereshkina (cast change on 1/12)
Alberth: Vladimir Shklyarov (cast change on 1/12)
Hanz: Yuri Smekalov
Mirtha: Anastasia Petushkova

Sat., Feb. 12 at 7:30 p.m.
Giselle: Uliana Lopatkina
Alberth: Daniil Korsuntsev
Hanz: Konstantin Zverev
Mirtha: Ekaterina Kondaurova

Sun., Feb. 13 at 1:30 p.m.
Giselle: Diana Vishneva
Alberth: Andrian Fadeyev
Hanz: Yuri Smekalov
Mirtha: Alexandra Iosifidi

Giselle Imortal

It was violet eyed Italian beauty Carlotta Grisi, who appeared on stage of Theatre de l’Academie Royale in Paris as world’s first Giselle and by doing so, herself reached the stage of immortality. Without Carlotta the work might had not materialized, for it was she, or better put, her charismatic personality and remarkable artistry that inspired Théophile Gautier and Jules Perrot to create Giselle immortal. Carlotta was the Muse and the two cultural giants were passionately in love with her.

World’s first Albrecht? It was Lucien Petipa. Yes, older brother of that Petipa whose name we came to associate with classical ballet.

FACT SHEET

Choreography: Jean Coralli & Jules Perrot
Music: Adolphe Adam
Libretto: Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges and Théophile Gautier
World Premiere: Theatre de l’Academie Royale de Musique, Paris. June 28. 1841
Premiered in St. Petersburg, Russia on February 5th, 1884. Revival by Marius Petipa

Original Cast:
Carlotta Grisi (Giselle)
Lucien Petipa (Albrecht)
Adele Dumilatre (Myrtha)

Mariinsky “Giselle”: Olga Spessivtseva

Even from the lineup of great Giselles, one solitary figure clearly stands out. Olga Spessivtseva’s early life ( she was born on July 18, 1895 ) falls between two Russian revolutions. Abrupt cataclysmic changes and collapse of the old world displaced millions of people and destroyed millions of lives. Olga was not a Scarlet O’Hara to walk against the wind, rather her tragic life is a reflection on turbulent times. Almost all of her roles carried within a premonition of the future, the inevitability of death and destruction of beauty. Theme of Beauty ruthlessly trampled upon and reacquired only in the afterlife, sounded particularly pure and clear in her rendering of Giselle.

“Having slowly risen from the grave, she timidly approached the mistress of the willis. then begins to rotate on one leg, extending the other in a flowing arabesque. It was like a dream, so powerful in its expression that it seemed to lie outside the realm of possible”, – wrote Spessivtseva’s contemporary Bogdanov-Berezovsky

“She performed the end of the first act sans pantomime, but with dancing steps alone, and in the theater everyone was weeping. After the first act the audience jumped to its feet and staged for Olga an unprecedented ovation. Yet the next morning she came to me sad and defeated: “I shouldn’t dance Giselle anymore, I come to resemble her too much”, – from the letter of contemporary to Olga’s sister Zinaida

And so she did. Olga loses her sanity and spends years in sanatorium, not recognizing anyone. At the twilight of her life she miraculously recovers and even recalls the steps from the ballet. Rare black and white photos and videos of the period keep memory alive of this extraordinary beautiful ballerina and perhaps the greatest Giselle ever.

Mariinsky “Giselle”: Nijinsky

And then there is Vaslav Nijinsky. Alas, the importance of his portrayal of Albrecht had been sadly obscured by the scandal concerning Nijinsky’s costume, scandal which led to his dismissal from the Imperial Mariinsky Theatre in 1911. And yet through the volumes of literature presenting you with sordid details of the incident, an inquisitive reader can still discern what is really important and that is the grandeur of his portrayal: in the beginning Nijinsky’s Albrecht comes out as a darling of fortune with an attitude of entitlement of one born with a silver spoon in his mouth. But a chance encounter with true beauty changes his life forever. He cannot, would not let it go and follows Giselle, who embodies it, to the other side.

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Mariinsky Legends

Anna Pavlova, Vakhtang Chabukiani, Alla Sizova, Irina Kolpakova, Marina Semyonova, N. Dudinskaya & K. Sergeev

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Mariinsky “Giselle”: The New Generation

Beauteous Irina Golub, dramatic Evgenia Obraztsova, refined Olesya Novikova and enchanting Alina Somova

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Mariinsky “Giselle” in art & photos

As seen through the lens of master of light MARK OLICH

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