The two-act ballet "Giselle" is a fantastic story created by three librettists - Henri de Saint-Georges, Théophile Gautier, Jean Coralli and composer Adolphe Adam, based on a legend retold by Heinrich Heine.
How was the immortal masterpiece created?
The Parisian public saw the ballet Giselle in 1841. This was the era of romanticism, when it was customary to include elements of folklore and myths in dance performances. The music for the ballet was written by composer Adolphe Adam. One of the authors of the libretto for the ballet “Giselle” was the famous librettist Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges and choreographer Jean Coralli, who staged the performance. The ballet “Giselle” does not lose its popularity to this day. The Russian public first saw this story of tragic love in 1884 at the Mariinsky Theater, but with some adjustments made to the production by Marius Petipa for the ballerina M. Gorshenkova, who performed the part of Giselle, who was then replaced by the great. In this performance, not only choreographic skill is important for the ballerina , but also dramatic talent, the ability to transform, since the main character in the first act appears as a naive girl, then turns into a suffering one, and in the second act she becomes a ghost.
Libretto of the ballet "Giselle"
In his book “On Germany,” Heinrich Heine included an old Slavic legend about the Wilis - girls who died from and rise from their graves at night to destroy young men wandering in the night, thus taking revenge for their ruined lives. It was this legend that became the basis for the libretto of the ballet “Giselle”. Summary of the production: Count Albert and the peasant Giselle love each other, but Albert has a fiancee; the girl finds out about this and dies of grief, after which she becomes a Vilisa; Albert comes to his beloved’s grave at night and is surrounded by Wilis, he is threatened with death, but Giselle protects him from the wrath of his friends and he manages to escape.
T. Gautier is the main developer of the libretto; he reworked the Slavic legend for the play “Giselle” (ballet). The content of the production takes the viewer away from the place where this myth arose. The librettist moved all the events to Thuringia.
Characters of the production
The main character is a peasant girl Giselle, Albert is her lover. Forester Hilarion (in Russian productions Hans). Bertha is Giselle's mother. Albert's bride is Bathilda. Wilfried is the squire, the Lady of the Wilis is Myrta. Among the characters are peasants, courtiers, servants, hunters, and Wilis.
T. Gautier decided to give the ancient myth a cosmopolitan character, and with his light hand, countries, customs and titles that were not in the original story were included in Giselle (ballet). The content was adjusted, as a result of which the characters were slightly changed. The author of the libretto made the main character Albert the Duke of Silesia, and the father of his bride became the Duke of Courland.
1 action
Ballet “Giselle”, summary of scenes 1 to 6
Events take place in a mountain village. Bertha lives with her daughter Giselle in a small house. Lois, Giselle's lover, lives in another hut nearby. Dawn came and the peasants went to work. Meanwhile, the forester Hans, who is in love with the main character, watches her meeting with Lois from a secluded place, and is tormented by jealousy. Seeing the passionate hugs and kisses of the lovers, he runs up to them and condemns the girl for such behavior. Lois chases him away. Hans vows revenge. Soon Giselle's friends appear, and she starts dancing with them. Bertha tries to stop these dances, noticing that her daughter has a weak heart, fatigue and excitement are dangerous to her life.
Ballet “Giselle”, summary of scenes from 7 to 13
Hans manages to uncover the secret of Lois, who, it turns out, is not a peasant at all, but Duke Albert. The forester sneaks into the Duke's house and takes his sword to use it as proof of his rival's noble origins. Hans shows Giselle Albert's sword. The truth is revealed that Albert is a Duke and has a fiancée. The girl is deceived; she does not believe in Albert's love. Her heart can't stand it and she dies. Albert, distraught with grief, tries to kill himself, but is not allowed to do so.
Act 2
Ballet “Giselle”, summary of scenes from 1 to 6 from act 2
After her death, Giselle turned into a Wilis. Hans, tormented by remorse and feeling guilty for the death of Giselle, comes to her grave, the Wilis notice him, circle in their round dance and he falls dead.
Ballet “Giselle”, summary of scenes from 7 to 13 from act 2
Albert is unable to forget his beloved. At night he comes to her grave. He is surrounded by Wilis, among whom is Giselle. He tries to hug her, but she is just an elusive shadow. He falls to his knees near her grave, Giselle flies up and allows him to touch her. The Wilis begin to circle Albert in a round dance, Giselle tries to save him, and he remains alive. At dawn, the Wilis disappear, and Giselle also disappears, saying goodbye to her lover forever, but she will forever live in his heart.
We present to your attention the libretto of the ballet Giselle (Willis) in two acts. Willis, according to German belief, are the souls of girls who died before their wedding. Libretto by T. Gautier, J. Saint-Georges, J. Coralli (according to the legend of G. Heine). Staged by J. Coralli, J. Perrault. Designer P. Siseri, costumes P. Lormier.
Characters: Giselle, a peasant girl. Bertha, her mother. Prince Albert disguised as a peasant. Duke of Courland. Bathilda, his daughter, Albert's fiancée. Wilfried, Albert's squire. Hans, the forester. Myrta, mistress of the Willis. Zelma, Monna are Mirta's friends. Retinue. Hunters. Peasants, peasant women. Willys.
A village in the mountains, surrounded by forests and vineyards. In the foreground is the house of the peasant woman Bertha, a widow who lives here with her daughter Giselle. The peasants are heading to the grape harvest. The girls greet Giselle, their most beautiful friend, everyone's favorite.
From the side opposite to where the grape pickers went, two people come out: one is dressed in a rich dress, the other, apparently, is his servant. This is Prince Albert with his squire Wilfried. Both hastily hide in a hunting lodge, from where, after some time, Albert emerges dressed in a peasant dress. This scene is observed by the forester Hans, unnoticed by Albert and Wilfried.
Albert approaches Bertha's house. Wilfried tries to dissuade him from some intention, but Albert removes the squire, knocks on the door and hides around the corner of the house. Giselle comes out when she knocks. Strange - no one is there! She frolics and dances carefree. Albert appears. Giselle pretends not to notice him and heads towards the house.
Then Albert touches her shoulder and gently draws her to him. Their dance turns into a love scene. Half-jokingly, Giselle expresses distrust of Albert’s love confessions. She picks a flower and reads fortunes on its petals: “Loves or does not love.” It turns out that he “doesn’t like it.” Giselle is saddened. Albert picks another flower. He manages to “love.” Giselle calms down and dances with Albert again. Captivated by the dance, they do not notice how Hans appears next to them. He begs Giselle not to believe Albert’s words. He has a presentiment that what awaits Giselle is not happiness, but grief; passionately assures Giselle that she cannot find a more devoted friend than him. Enraged, Albert drives Hans away. Giselle believes that the simpleton Hans blurted out God knows what in a fit of jealousy and continues the dance with Albert with even greater tenderness.
Giselle's friends return from the vineyards. They surround her and start dancing. Albert watches Giselle with admiration. Embarrassed and proud of his attention, she invites him to take part in the general fun.
Giselle’s mother, who came out of the house, stops dancing and reminds her daughter that it is harmful for her to dance so much: after all, she has a bad heart. But Giselle is not afraid of anything, she is happy. At Bertha's insistence, everyone disperses.
The sounds of hunting horns are heard from a distance, and soon a large group of smartly dressed ladies and gentlemen appears. Among them are the Duke of Courland and his daughter Bathilda, Albert's fiancée. Hot and tired from hunting, they want to rest and refresh themselves. Bertha bustles around the table, making deep bows to the noble gentlemen. Giselle comes out of the house. Bathilda is delighted with Giselle's beauty and charm. The same one does not take her eyes off Bathilda, studying every detail of her toilet. The simpleton is especially struck by the long train of the Duke's daughter. A dialogue arises between Bathilda and Giselle: “What are you doing?” - asks Bathilda. - “I do needlework, I help with housework,” the girl answers. “But there is probably something else that you do more willingly?” the noble lady asks. “Oh yes,” answers Giselle, “More than anything in the world, I love to dance.” And she does a few steps.
Imbued with even greater sympathy for Giselle, Bathilde gives her a gold chain. Giselle is delighted and embarrassed by the gift. Bathilda's father heads to Bertha's house to rest. The hunters also go to rest.
Giselle's friends beg Berthe to let them dance a little more. She reluctantly agrees. Overjoyed, Giselle dances her best dance. Albert joins her. Suddenly Hans runs up, roughly pushes them aside and, pointing at Albert, reproaches him for dishonesty. Everyone is outraged by the insolence of the forester. Then, to confirm his words, Hans shows Albert’s weapon studded with precious stones, which he discovered in the hunting lodge where Albert was changing clothes. Giselle is shocked and demands an explanation from Albert. He tries to calm her down, snatches Hans’s sword, draws it and rushes at the offender. Wilfried arrives in time and stops his master to prevent the murder. Hans blows the hunting horn. The participants in the hunt, led by the Duke and Bathilda, leave the house, alarmed by the unexpected signal. Seeing Albert in a peasant dress, they express extreme surprise; he is confused and tries to explain something.
The Duke's retinue bows so respectfully to Albert, and the noble guests greet him so cordially that the unfortunate girl has no doubt: she has been deceived. When Albert approaches Bathilde and kisses her hand, Giselle runs up to her and says that Albert swore allegiance to her, that he loves her. Outraged by Giselle's claims, Bathilde shows her her wedding ring - she is Albert's fiancée. Giselle tears off the gold chain Bathilda gave her, throws it to the ground and, sobbing, falls into her mother’s arms. Not only Giselle’s friends and fellow villagers, but even the Duke’s courtiers are full of sympathy for the unfortunate girl.
Albert says something to Giselle, but she does not want to listen to him. She's going crazy. Scattered pictures of the recent past, fortune telling, oaths, words of love, dances flash in the clouded consciousness. Noticing Albert's sword lying on the ground, Giselle grabs it to take her own life. Hans snatches the weapon from Giselle's hands.
For the last time, the memory of fortune telling on chamomile petals flashes through her mind, and Giselle falls dead.
Night. Rural cemetery. An inconsolable Hans comes here. Mysterious sounds are heard, swamp lights flash. Frightened Hans flees. Moonlight falls on a shadow growing from the ground. This is the mistress of the Willis Myrta.
A round dance of Willis appears from behind the bushes. They go to the lake and seem to be bathed in moonlight. At a sign from Myrta, they surround Giselle’s grave, preparing to meet their new friend. The ghostly figure of Giselle rises from the grave. With a wave of Myrtha's hand, Giselle gains strength. Her movements are becoming faster and more confident.
Noise is heard. The Willis run away. Albert comes to the cemetery, accompanied by a squire. He is looking for Giselle's grave. In vain does the squire warn about possible danger; Albert is left alone in deep thought and grief. Suddenly he notices the figure of Giselle. Not believing his eyes, he rushes towards her. The vision disappears. Then it appears again and again, as if melting into thin air.
The round dance of the Willis is chasing Hans. The chain of the round dance is broken, and the jeeps form a wall on the way to the lake. The forester runs along this wall, hoping to escape, but the vengeful Willis push him into the lake, and one after another they disappear.
Albert comes out of the darkness, pursued by the jeeps. He falls at Myrta's feet, begging for salvation. But Mirta is ruthless. Giselle runs in with her arms outstretched to her lover. She takes Albert to the tombstone and protects him. Myrta, wanting to destroy Albert, orders Giselle to leave him and dance. Despite Myrta's prohibition, Albert joins Giselle. This is their last dance. Giselle approaches her grave and disappears into it.
The Willis surround Albert and draw him into their destructive round dance. Exhausted, Albert falls at Myrta’s feet. The ringing of a clock can be heard from behind the cemetery. Six hits. The Willis are deprived of their power and, merging with the pre-dawn fog, disappear. The sounds of horns are heard. Servants sent to search for Albert appear. The ghost of Giselle appears for the last time.
Albert gives up his terrible night visions and returns to reality.
The ballet “Giselle” by Adolphe Adam is one of the most famous performances of the world classical choreographic repertoire. Its premiere took place in 1841 in Paris. The authors of the libretto drew from the works of Heine and Hugo the theme of the Wilis - brides who died before the wedding. The libretto and music were created on the initiative of choreographer Jules Perrault. Over time, Marius Petipa turned to “Giselle” and brought its choreography to perfection. At the beginning of the 20th century, during the triumphant “Russian Seasons”, Sergei Diaghilev brought “Giselle” to Paris, and the French saw their national ballet, carefully preserved in Russia. Since then, the play has received many interpretations. For the Mikhailovsky Theater, Nikita Dolgushin reconstructed Petipa's performance with a time-tested choreographic text, precise staging, and numerous ancient details.
The plot of the ballet is simple: the young count, being engaged to a rich bride, falls in love with the peasant girl Giselle and, hiding his title, looks after her under the guise of a peasant. A forester in love with Giselle reveals the count's secret; Giselle learns of his infidelity and, mad with grief, dies. After death, Giselle becomes a Wilis, but forgives her unfaithful lover and saves him from the revenge of her friends.
Act one
The young Count is in love with Giselle. He wears a peasant's dress, and Giselle mistakes him for a young man from a neighboring village. The forester, who is in love with Giselle, tries to convince her that her lover is not who he claims to be. But Giselle doesn't want to listen to him.
The forester enters the house where the young count is changing into a peasant dress, and finds his sword with a coat of arms. The sound of a horn announces the approach of hunters. Among them are the count's bride and her father. The noble lady is fascinated by Giselle and gives her her necklace.
In the midst of a peasant festival, a forester appears. He accuses the count of lying and shows his sword as proof. Giselle doesn't believe him. Then the forester blows his horn, and his bride appears before the embarrassed count. Shocked by her lover's deception, Giselle loses her mind and dies.
Act two
Midnight. The forester comes to Giselle's grave. The Wilis rise from their graves and he flees. Everyone who appears in the cemetery is forced by the Wilis to dance until the traveler falls dead. The mistress of the Wilis calls the shadow of Giselle from the grave: from now on she is one of the Wilis. The Count comes to Giselle's grave. Seeing the young man's grief and repentance, Giselle forgives him. The Wilis pursue the forester and, having overtaken him, throw him into the lake. Now the same fate awaits the count. In vain Giselle asks the Wilis to let her lover go, the Wilis are inexorable. The striking of a clock can be heard from afar. When the sun rises, the Wilis lose their power. The Count is saved and forgiven. Giselle disappears into the predawn fog.
Gerald Dowler, Financial Times
Giselle, directed by Nikita Dolgushin, is back in London, and invariably beautiful: absolutely traditional, with scenery lovingly painted “based on” those used in the first Paris production in 1841. There is nothing superfluous either in the choreographic or in the narrative part: everything unnecessary is discarded to reveal the essence of this ballet.
The costumes are simple, especially in the second act with the jeeps. The only dissonant note occurs in the first act, where the hunters are dressed more for a banquet than for a foray into the forest. What the director achieved best was the sharp contrast between the sunny, earthly world depicted in the first act and the gloomy world of ghosts in the second. Giselle herself becomes the bridge between the two worlds.
This is a production of the highest level - not least thanks to the jeeps, the souls of deceived brides, who dance as one, in absolutely impeccable style. It's rare to see such synchronicity combined with such dedication. The main roles are played by guest soloist Denis Matvienko (Albert) and soloist of the Mikhailovsky Theater Irina Perren. Matvienko fully exploited the technical possibilities that this role offers - his solos are filled with confident nobility. However, the greatest impression is made by his strength and thoughtfulness as Giselle's partner and his detailed portrait of a repentant scoundrel. Albert, played by Matvienko, first repels us with his undisguised desire to take possession of Giselle - this is not a love-sick youth at all. Gradually, the hero realizes that his feelings are much deeper - and the artist skillfully portrays this. And in the second act we acutely feel Albert’s repentance at Giselle’s grave. The dancer managed to create a memorable image.
Irina Perren dances the part of Giselle with inspiration. In the first act she is a dangerously naive peasant girl. Her happiness when she hears Albert's confessions or accepts a necklace as a gift from Bathilda is so great that her heart is ready to burst. The ballerina also vividly portrays the pangs of madness into which she falls after Albert’s betrayal. The shadow of this betrayal plunges the heroine’s entire world into darkness and leads to her death. Irina Perrin did an excellent job of transforming Giselle: the pretty, simple-minded girl in the first act becomes a sad ghost in the second. The ballerina's technique perfectly complements her artistic skills. When she freezes in an arabesque, this is not done for show - the soloist seems to be denying the heaviness of the earthly world. This production is a real achievement.
He wandered around Europe, collecting folk tales, legends, and fairy tales that were then in fashion. One of the legends recorded by the poet told about the Vilis girls. And it ended with these words: “In their faded hearts, in their dead legs, the love of dance remained, which they did not manage to satisfy during their lives, and at midnight they rise, gather in round dances on the high road, and woe to the young man who meets them! He will have to dance with them until he falls dead..." Almost simultaneously with Heine's travel notes, Victor Hugo also published a cycle of new poems, the main character of which was a fifteen-year-old Spanish girl named Giselle. More than anything else in the world, she loved to dance. Death overtook the girl at the door of the ballroom, where she, not knowing fatigue, danced all night. The works of two romantic poets - German and French, full of mysterious beauty, unclear visions and spirits, seemed to be specially created for ballet. “Life - dance - death” - such tempting literary material for choreography appears once every hundred years. And Théophile Gautier, the most famous ballet lebrettist of the 19th century, could not resist the temptation. Very soon the first version of the script for the ballet about the Wilis came out of his pen. It seemed to have everything that a theatrical performance of that time required - the pale light of the moon, a ballroom with an enchanted floor, and dancing ghosts. But as Gautier believed, something essential, very important was missing from the libretto. Devoid of sick pride, Gautier invited the well-known playwright and screenwriter Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges as a co-author. This is how the script for one of the saddest and most beautiful ballets, Giselle, was born. Its plot told about the love of a peasant girl for Count Albert. Fascinated by this romantic story, composer Adolf Adam wrote the music for the play in ten days.
Soon Jules Perrot began staging Giselle at the Grand Opera. In his fate, human and creative, this ballet played a strange, fatal role. He brought true immortality to Perrault the choreographer, but destroyed his life, depriving him of happiness and love. The woman of his life was Carlotta Grisi. Perrault was born in France in the city of Leon, where he received his ballet education.
In 1825 he came to Paris, dreaming of dancing on the stage of the Opera. There was no money to live on, and to earn it, the young man performed in the evenings at the Port Saint-Martin theater, portraying a monkey. During the day he attended Auguste Vestris's advanced training class. His performances on the stage of the Grand Opera together with Taglioni were a huge success. Perrault's dance, technically impeccable, courageous and energetic, had nothing in common with the sugary affectation that was then in fashion among Opera artists. But the all-powerful Maria Taglioni, who had unlimited power in the theater, did not want to share her glory with anyone. The management immediately satisfied the whim of the “star, or etoile”. And twenty-four-year-old Perrault, without explanation, immediately found himself on the street. He wandered around Europe for a long time until he ended up in Naples, where he met two lovely girls - the Grisi sisters. Perrault fell in love with 14-year-old Carlotta at first sight.
Senorita Grisi was not new to the theater. From the age of seven she studied dancing in Milan, and at ten she was already a soloist in the children's corps de ballet of La Scala. Carlotta had a wonderful voice. Many predicted her a brilliant career as an opera singer. But she chose ballet. Spending many hours in the rehearsal class, she achieved enormous success in dance with the help of smart advice from Perrault, who was ready to do anything for the sake of his Italian Galatea. They got married when the girl reached adulthood. We danced together in Vienna. But the cherished dream of both was the stage of the Grand Opera. Arriving in Paris, they waited a long time for news from the Opera. Finally the invitation came, but, alas, only for Grisi. The doors of the theater were closed forever for Perrault the dancer.
Dancer Jules Perrot has died. But he was replaced by another Perrault-genius choreographer, the author of “Giselle”. The appearance of this performance was supposed to reveal to the spoiled Parisian audience a new star, not inferior to Taglioni - Carlotta Grisi. Perrault worked like a man possessed. Grisi's stormy romance with Théophile Gautier was no longer a secret to anyone. Perrault was the last to know about this. Fury and despair seized him, and, leaving the ballet unfinished, he fled from Paris.
A fatal love triangle that connected the lives of J. Perrot, C. Grisi and T. Gautier until death
On June 28, 1841, the premiere of “Giselle, or the Wilis” took place at the Opera with Carlotta Grisi and Lucien Petipa (the brother of Marius Petipa) in the lead roles. The choreographer was Georges Coralli, who completed the production. Perrault's name was not even mentioned in the poster....
In 1840, Adan, already a famous composer, returned to Paris from St. Petersburg, where he followed Maria Taglioni, the famous French dancer who performed in Russia from 1837 to 1842. Having written the ballet “The Sea Robber” for Taglioni in St. Petersburg, in Paris he began working on the next ballet, “Giselle”. The scenario was created by the French poet Théophile Gautier (1811-1872) based on an ancient legend recorded by Heinrich Heine - about the Wilis - girls who died from unhappy love, who, having turned into magical creatures, dance to death the young people they meet at night, taking revenge on them for their ruined life. To give the action a non-specific character, Gautier deliberately mixed countries and titles: assigning the scene of action to Thuringia, he made Albert the Duke of Silesia (he is called a count in later versions of the libretto), and the bride's father a prince (in later versions he is a duke) of Courland. The famous librettist, the skilled author of many librettos, Jules Saint-Georges (1799-1875) and Jean Coralli (1779-1854), participated in the work on the script. Coralli (real name Peraccini) worked for many years at La Scala in Milan, and then at theaters in Lisbon and Marseille. In 1825 he came to Paris and from 1831 became choreographer of the Grand Opera, then called the Royal Academy of Music and Dance. Several of his ballets were performed here. Thirty-year-old Jules Joseph Perrault (1810-1892) also took an active part in the production of the ballet. An extremely talented dancer, a student of the famous Vestris, he was extremely ugly, and therefore his ballet career was not successful. Conflicting information remains about his life. It is known that he spent several years in Italy, where he met the very young Carlotta Grisi, who, thanks to her classes with him, became an outstanding ballerina. For Carlotta, who soon became his wife, Perrault created the role of Giselle.
The ballet premiered June 28, 1841 year on the stage of the Paris Grand Opera. The choreographic composition was borrowed by the choreographers from La Sylphide, staged by F. Taglioni nine years earlier and which presented the romantic concept of ballet to the public for the first time. As in “La Sylphide,” which became a new word in art, in “Giselle” the cantilence of plasticity appeared, the adagio form was improved, dance became the main means of expression and received poetic spirituality. The solo “fantastic” parts included various flights, creating the impression of airiness of the characters. The dances of the corps de ballet were also decided in the same vein. In “earthly”, non-fantastic images, the dance acquired national character and increased emotionality. The heroines stood up on pointe shoes, their dance in virtuosity began to resemble the work of virtuoso instrumentalists of that time. It was in “Giselle” that ballet romanticism was finally established and the symphonization of music and ballet began.
A year later, in 1842, “Giselle” was staged on the stage of the St. Petersburg Bolshoi Theater by the French choreographer Antoine Titus Dochi, better known as Titus. This production largely reproduced the Parisian performance, with the exception of some modifications in the dances. Six years later, Perrault and Grisi, who came to St. Petersburg, brought new colors to the performance. The next edition of the ballet for the Mariinsky Theater was carried out in 1884 by the famous choreographer Marius Petipa (1818-1910). Later, Soviet choreographers resumed the previous productions in various theaters. The published clavier (Moscow, 1985) states: “Choreographic text by J. Perrot, J. Coralli, M. Petipa, revised by L. Lavrovsky.”
Ballet libretto
Fantastic ballet in two acts
Libretto by J.-A.-V. Saint-Georges and T. Gautier. Choreographers J. Coralli and J. Perrault.
First performance: Paris, « Grand Opera ", 28 June 1841
Characters
Duke Albert of Silesia, dressed as a peasant. Prince of Courland. Wilfried, the Duke's squire. Hilarion the forester. Old peasant. Bathilda, the Duke's bride. Giselle, peasant woman. Bertha, Giselle's mother. Myrta, Queen of the Wilis. Zulma. Monna.
The legend underlying the ballet « Giselle, or Wilis ».
In Slavic countries there is a legend about night dancers called “Wilis”. Wilis - brides who died on the eve of the wedding; these unfortunate young creatures cannot rest in the grave. In their faded hearts, the love for dance, which they did not have time to enjoy in life, did not extinguish. At midnight they rise from their graves and gather along the roads; and woe to the young man who met them: he must dance with them until he falls dead.
In wedding dresses, with wreaths on their heads, with rings on their hands, in the light of the moon, like elves, the Wilis dance; their faces, whiter than snow, still sparkle with the beauty of youth. They laugh cheerfully and insidiously, beckoning seductively; their whole appearance is full of such sweet promises that these deceased bacchantes are irresistible.
