Giselle is a ballet in two acts with a libretto by Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges and Theophile Gautier. The librettist took his inspiration from a poem by HeinrichHeine,and the ballet tells the story of a peasant girl named Giselle, whose ghost, after he premature death, protects her lover from the vengeance of a group of evil spirits called Wilis, female spirits who, jilted before their wedding day, rise from their grave at night and seek revenge upon men by dancing them to death. The Cape Town City Ballet continues to build on its collaboration, fostered over several decades, with companies in the UK, Europe, and the USA, with the appearance of one of Europe’s top ballerinas, Ksenia Ovsyanick, from the Berlin State Ballet at two performances. She will be partnered by CTBC’s Senior Principal Dancer, Daniel Szybkowski. Other casts of the star leading roles are Laura Bosenberg also with Daniel Szybkowski, Kirstel Paterson with Conrad Nusser and Mariette Opperman with Xola Putye.

The ballet was first presented at the Paris Opéra’s Salle le Peletier on 28 June 1841 with Carlotta Grisi as Giselle, Lucien Petipa as Albrecht, and Jean Coralli as Hilarion. In South Africa, the first performance of the ballet was presented in 1947 by the South African National Ballet, previously Cecily Robinson’s Ballet Club, with Alexis Rassine & Olive James in the leading roles.

In 1949, Anton Dolin produced the ballet for the South African National Ballet, who joined forces with the UCT Ballet Co for the occasion. Dolin partnered Alicia Markova, and they danced in Cape Town’s Alhambra Theatre. It was again produced by the UCT Ballet Co in 1955, featuring Alexis Rassine and Nadia Nerina,The first time the ballet was danced by the newly-formed CAPAB Ballet Co was in 1965. David Poole created his version of the ballet in 1972 in the Nico Malan Opera House, when the leading roles were danced by Phyllis Spira and Eduard Greyling, with Elizabeth Triegaardt as Myrtha, Queen of the Wilis, and John Simons in the pivotal role of Hilarion – a version that was reproduced many times for the CAPAB Ballet Co.

The CTCB’s corps is recognised as being of world class and will again transport the audiences in the second act to the eerie and evil world of the Wilis. Giselle is being danced to full orchestral accompaniment for all but one performance, so dancers must adapt to tempi that naturally vary from performance to performance. When it comes to the corps de ballet, the choreography demands that each dancer is totally in sync with the music – not an easy task.

Visually, audiences can look forward to the original costume designs by Peter Cazalet, produced 40 years ago, some of which are still in good shape, while others have been faithfully reconstructed.