Bolshoi Theater Giselle summary. Giselle, or Wilis

Ballet "Giselle" - summary. Libretto The two-act ballet "Giselle" is a fantastic story created by three librettists - Henri de Saint-Georges, Theophile Gauthier, Jean Coralli and composer Adolphe Adam, based on a legend retold by Heinrich Heine. How an immortal masterpiece was 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 the composer Adolphe Adam. One of the authors of the libretto for the ballet "Giselle" was Theophile Gautier. Together with him, the well-known librettist Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges and choreographer Jean Coralli, who directed the performance, also worked on the libretto of the ballet Giselle. The ballet "Giselle" does not lose its popularity to this day. The Russian public first saw this story about tragic love in 1884 at the Mariinsky Theatre, 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 Anna Pavlova. In this performance, not only choreographic skills are important for the ballerina, but also dramatic talent, the ability to reincarnate, 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 vilis - girls who died from unhappy love and rise from their graves at night to destroy young men wandering in the night, thus they avenge their lost 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 woman Giselle love each other, but Albert has a bride; the girl finds out about this and dies of grief, after which she becomes a vilisa; Albert comes at night to the grave of his beloved and he is surrounded by Wilis, he is threatened with death, but Giselle protects him from the wrath of her friends and he manages to escape. T. Gautier is the main developer of the libretto; he reworked the Slavic legend for the performance of Giselle (ballet). The content of the production takes the viewer away from the place where this myth originated. 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 Illarion (in Russian productions of Hans). Berta is Giselle's mother. Albert's fiancee is Bathilde. Wilfried is a squire, the Queen of Wilis is Mirta. Among the characters are peasants, courtiers, servants, hunters, vilis.

T. Gauthier decided to give ancient myth cosmopolitan character, and with its light hand countries, customs and titles not found in original story, were included in Giselle (ballet). The content has been adjusted, as a result of which the characters have been 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. Act 1 Ballet "Giselle", a summary of scenes 1 to 6 The events take place in a mountain village. Berta lives with her daughter Giselle in a small house. Lois, Giselle's lover, lives nearby in another hut. Dawn came and the peasants went to work. Meanwhile, the forester Hans, who is in love with the main character, is watching her meeting with Lois from a secluded place, he is tormented by jealousy. Seeing the passionate hugs and kisses of lovers, he runs up to them and condemns the girl for such behavior. Lois chases him away. Hans vows revenge. Giselle's girlfriends soon appear, and she starts dancing with them. Berta tries to stop these dances, noticing that her daughter has a weak heart, fatigue and excitement are dangerous for her life.

The ballet "Giselle", a 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 as proof of his rival's noble birth. Hans shows Giselle Albert's sword. The truth is revealed that Albert is a duke and he has a fiancee. The girl is deceived, she does not believe in Albert's love. Her heart gives out and she dies. Albert, mad with grief, tries to kill himself, but is not allowed to do so. Act 2 Ballet Giselle, summary of scenes 1 to 6 of Act 2 After Giselle's death, she turned into a vilisa. Hans, tormented by remorse and feeling guilty for the death of Giselle, comes to her grave, the vilis notice him, circle in their round dance, and he falls dead.

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 work of Heine and Hugo the theme of Wilis - brides who died before the wedding. The libretto and music were created at the initiative of the choreographer Jules Perrot. Over time, Marius Petipa turned to Giselle and perfected its choreography. 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 stored in Russia. Since then, the play has received many interpretations. For the Mikhailovsky Theatre, Nikita Dolgushin reconstructed Petipa's performance with a time-tested choreographic text, accurate mise-en-scenes, and numerous antique details.

The plot of the ballet is simple: a young count, being betrothed to a rich bride, falls in love with a peasant woman, Giselle, and, hiding his title, courts her under the guise of a peasant. The forester, who is in love with Giselle, reveals the secret of the count, Giselle learns about his infidelity and, distraught with grief, dies. After death, Giselle becomes a vilisa, but she 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 dress, and Giselle mistakes him for a young man from a neighboring village. The forester, in love with Giselle, tries to convince her that her lover is not the one he claims to be. But Giselle does not want to listen to him.
The forester enters the house, where the young count changes into a peasant dress, and finds his sword with a coat of arms. The sound of the horn heralds the approach of the hunters. Among them are the count's fiancee and her father. A noble lady is fascinated by Giselle and gives her her necklace.
In the midst of a peasant holiday, a forester appears. He accuses the count of lying and shows his sword as proof. Giselle does not believe him. Then the forester blows his horn, and his bride appears before the embarrassed count. Shocked by the deceit of her beloved, 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. All who appear in the cemetery are forced to dance by the Wilis until the traveler falls dead. The mistress of the Wilis summons the shadow of Giselle from the grave: henceforth she is one of the Wilis. The Count comes to Giselle's grave. Seeing the grief and remorse of the young man, Giselle forgives him. The Wilis chase the forester and, having overtaken him, they throw him into the lake. Now the same fate awaits the count. In vain Giselle asks the Wilis to let go of her lover, the Wilis are inexorable. From a distance the clock strikes. With the rising of the sun, the vilis lose their power. The Count is saved and forgiven. Giselle disappears into the predawn mist.

Gerald Dowler, Financial Times

Giselle, staged by Nikita Dolgushin, is back in London, and invariably beautiful: absolutely traditional, with scenery lovingly painted “based on” those that were used at the first Parisian production 1841. There is nothing superfluous neither in the choreographic nor in the narrative part: everything unnecessary is discarded in order to reveal the essence of this ballet.

The costumes are simple, especially in the second act with the jeeps. The only discordant note is found in the first act, where the hunters are dressed more for a banquet than for a foray into the forest. Best of all, the director succeeded in a 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 staging the highest level- not least thanks to the jeeps, the souls of deceived brides who dance as one, in perfect impeccable style. It is rare to see such synchronicity coupled with such dedication. The main roles are played by guest soloist Denis Matvienko (Albert) and soloist of the Mikhailovsky Theater Irina Perren. Matvienko fully revealed the technical possibilities that this role offers - his solos are filled with confident nobility. Most impressive, however, are his strength and solicitude as Giselle's partner and his detailed portrait of the repentant scoundrel. Albert, played by Matvienko, at first repels us with his undisguised desire to possess Giselle - this is not a youth suffering from love at all. Gradually, the hero realizes that his feelings are much deeper - and the artist skillfully portrays this. And in the second act, we keenly feel Albert's remorse at Giselle's grave. The dancer managed to create a memorable image.

Irina Perrin 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 Bathilde is so great that her heart is ready to burst. Just as vividly, the ballerina depicts the pangs of madness into which she falls after Albert's betrayal. The shadow of this betrayal plunges the whole world of the heroine into darkness and leads to her death. Irina Perrin did an excellent job of transforming Giselle: a pretty simple-hearted girl in the first act becomes a woeful 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 deny the gravity in this way. earthly world. This show is a real achievement.

The production of "Giselle" appeared on stage ballet theater during the heyday of romanticism. Her role in the formation of this trend in art is very significant. T. Gauthier, J. Coralli and J. Saint-Georges are the creators of the libretto of the ballet "Giselle", a summary of which we will consider in this article. The production demonstrates the authors' appeal to their favorite romantic theme - mysticism. Adolphe Charles Adam - French composer. He is also one of the creators of the romantic ballet.

Exposition of images

The article will present a summary of the ballet "Giselle". The plot is based on the events taking place in the village. It is located among the mountains, surrounded by forest and vineyards. The peasants are going to the grape harvest. They pass by the house where the peasant woman Bertha lives, and her friends greet her daughter Giselle. Prince Albert and his squire Wilfried appear. They head to the hunting lodge and hide there for a while. From there, the prince comes out already in peasant clothes. This scene is witnessed by the unnoticed forester Hans.

Love affair

Albert goes to Bertha's house. The squire tries in vain to dissuade his master from any intentions. The prince pushes the servant away and knocks on the door, then hides. Giselle, coming out to knock and not finding anyone, dances, then is about to leave. Albert appears, but the girl, as if not noticing him, goes to the house. The prince touches her hand and hugs her tenderly. Their subsequent dance turns into a love scene. Albert confesses his love, but Giselle, jokingly, expresses her doubts about this. She reads on the petals of a flower. As a result, having received the answer "does not like", she is very upset. Then Albert guesses on another flower. Fortune telling ends with the answer "loves." The girl is calm and happy. They are dancing again.

Further, retelling briefly the content of the ballet "Giselle", we will mention the forester Hans. He appears unexpectedly, asks the girl not to trust the words of Albert and assures her of his devotion. Hans has no doubt that Albert will only bring her grief and disappointment.

Albert is furious. He chases the forester. The girl justifies Hans' act with jealousy. Then, even more tenderly and passionately, she continues her dance with Albert.

The next scene begins with the return of Giselle's friends from the vineyards. There is general fun and dancing. Albert watches the girl admiringly. Flattered by his attention, she invites him to take part in this fun, which he does with pleasure.

Berta comes out of the house and reminds her daughter that she has a heart condition. Therefore, it is unhealthy for her to dance so much. The fun is over.

Notable guests

The sounds of hunting can be heard in the distance. The appearance of new characters makes the action more intense. Elegantly dressed ladies and gentlemen appear. Among them, the Duke of Courland with his daughter Bathilda, Albert's fiancee. The hunt has made everyone excited and tired, and they dream of rest and food. For rest, the duke chooses Giselle's house. Berta and her daughter went out to meet the guests. Bathilde is enchanted by beauty and spontaneity main character. The same, in turn, admires the elegant toilets of the guest. A dialogue takes place between them, in which Bathilde asks the girl about her favorite pastime. She replies that she loves to dance. As a token of her sympathy, Bathilde gives the simpleton a present. This is a luxury gold chain. Giselle is very happy, but this causes her confusion. Distinguished guests disperse to rest. Bathilda's father went to Bertha's house.

exposure

Giselle and her friends persuade Bertha to let them dance. Berta reluctantly agrees. Giselle is happy. She performs her very best dance. Albert joins her. Suddenly, the forester Hans appears. Roughly pushing them aside, he accuses Albert of dishonesty and deceit. Everyone around is perplexed, they are outraged by the act of the forester. Then, as proof of his accusations, Hans shows everyone Albert's weapon, which he found in the hunting lodge. It is adorned with jewels, which testifies to its noble birth. This shocked Giselle. She demands an explanation from a new acquaintance. The prince tries to calm the girl, and then snatches the sword from Hans's hands and rushes at him. Wilfried arrived on time and did not allow his master to commit the murder. Hans the forester starts blowing his hunting horn. Alarmed by the signal, distinguished guests emerge from Bertha's house. Among them is the duke with his daughter Bathilda. Dressed in peasant clothes, Albert causes them bewilderment. He, in turn, tries to justify his act.

tragic denouement

Giselle sees how noble guests respectfully greet Albert, how respectfully the duke's servants are with him. She has no doubt that she was deceived. The prince then turns to Bathilde, kissing her hand. Giselle runs up to her rival with the words that Albert swore to her his love of fidelity. Bathilde is outraged. She shows Giselle her wedding ring, indicating that she is the real bride of the prince. Giselle is desperate. She rips off and throws the golden chain given by Bathilda. Sobbing, she falls into her mother's arms. Not only her friends, but also noble guests sympathize with her.

Albert tries to calm Giselle. He says something to her. However, the girl does not listen to him, her mind is clouded with grief. She remembers his oaths, promises, divination, dances. Seeing Albert's sword, she tries to kill herself. But Hans takes the weapon from her hands.

Her last memory is fortune telling on daisies. Giselle is dying.

Instead of an epilogue

We continue our acquaintance with the content of the ballet "Giselle". Further, the action takes place in the village cemetery. Hans came here, but, frightened by the mysterious sounds, he ran away.

Willis - brides who died before the wedding, lead their round dance. At a sign from their mistress Mirta, they surround Giselle's grave, from which her ghostly figure emerges. With a wave of Mirta's hand, she gained strength.

Albert appears at the cemetery, accompanied by his squire. He is looking for where the girl is buried. Suddenly he saw her figure and rushed after her. Several times this vision appeared and disappeared, as if melting in the air.

Meanwhile, the jeeps are chasing Hans and, having overtaken him, vengefully push him into the lake.

Albert should be their next victim. He unsuccessfully begs the ruthless Mirta for mercy. Giselle appears. She intends to protect her lover and save him from certain death. Together they dance their last dance. Then the ghost of the girl disappears into her grave, and the round dance of the jeep surrounds Albert. The ringing of the clock announces the end of the night. With the dawn, the jeeps disappeared. The retinue of the prince appears, sent in search of his master. Giselle's ghost appears in last time. Albert's return to the real world completes the ballet Giselle.

Giselle in Russia

The premiere of this ballet in Russia took place in 1842. On the stage Mariinsky Theater it was staged in 1884. The production of the ballet Giselle at the Mariinsky Theatre, the content of which makes everyone empathize, was a huge success.

The main meaning of the plot is the idea eternal love which is stronger than death.

Nowadays, a huge number of spectators visit the theaters of Russia, including the Mariinsky, and the content of the ballet "Giselle" is of interest to people of different generations.

We bring to your attention the libretto of the ballet Giselle (Willis) in two acts. Wilis, according to German belief, are the souls of girls who died before the wedding. Libretto by T. Gauthier, J. Saint-Georges, J. Coralli (according to the legend of G. Heine). Staged by J. Coralli, J. Perrot. Designed by P. Ciceri, costumes by P. Lormier.

Characters: Giselle, a peasant girl. Bertha, her mother. Prince Albert disguised as a peasant. Duke of Courland. Bathilde, his daughter, Albert's fiancée. Wilfried, Albert's squire. Hans, forester. Mirta, mistress of the villis. Zelma, Monna - Mirta's friends. Retinue. Hunters. Peasants, peasant women. Jeeps.

Village in the mountains, surrounded by forests and vineyards. On foreground the house of the peasant woman Berta, a widow who lives here with her daughter Giselle. The peasants are sent to the grape harvest. The girls greet Giselle, their most beautiful friend, everyone's favorite.

From the side opposite to the one where the grape pickers left, two people come out: one is dressed in a rich dress, the other, apparently, is his servant. This is Prince Albert with his squire Wilfrid. Both hurriedly hide in a hunting lodge, from where, after a while, Albert comes out dressed in a peasant dress. This scene is observed by the forester Hans, not noticed 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 behind the corner of the house. Giselle comes out. Strange - no one! She carelessly frolics, dances. 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 tells fortunes on its petals: "Loves - does not love." It turns out - "does not like." Giselle is sad. Albert plucks another flower. He gets "loves". Giselle calms down and dances with Albert again. Fascinated by the dance, they do not notice how Hans is next to them. He conjures Giselle not to believe Albert's words. He foresees that Giselle is not waiting for happiness, but grief; passionately assures Giselle that more devoted friend than he, she can not find. An enraged Albert drives Hans away. Giselle believes that the simpleton Hans blabbed God knows what in a fit of jealousy and continues to dance with Albert with even greater tenderness.

Giselle's friends are returning from the vineyards. They surround her and start dancing. Albert watches Giselle with admiration. Embarrassed and proud of his attention, she calls him to take part in the general fun.

Giselle's mother, who has left the house, stops dancing and reminds her daughter that it is harmful for her to dance so much: she has a sick 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 afar, and soon a large group of smartly dressed ladies and gentlemen appears. Among them are the Duke of Courland and his daughter Bathilde, Albert's fiancee. Excited and tired of hunting, they want to rest and refresh themselves. Berta bustles around the table, bowing deeply to noble gentlemen. Giselle comes out of the house. Bathilde is delighted with the beauty and charm of Giselle. The same one does not take her eyes off Bathilde, studying every detail of her dress. Particularly striking is the long train of the duke's daughter. Between Bathilde and Giselle there is a dialogue: "What are you doing?" - asks Bathilda. - "I do needlework, I help with the housework," the girl answers. "But there is probably something else that you do more willingly?" “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 golden chain. Giselle is delighted and embarrassed by the gift. Bathilde's father goes to Bertha's house to rest. Hunters also go to rest.

Giselle's friends beg Bertha to let them dance a little more. She reluctantly agrees. Overjoyed, Giselle dances her best dance. Albert joins her. Hans suddenly runs up, rudely pushes them aside and, pointing to Albert, reproaches him for dishonesty. Everyone is outraged by the arrogance of the forester. Then, in confirmation of his words, Hans shows a dotted precious stones Albert's weapon, discovered by him 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 the sword from Hans, draws it and rushes at the offender. Wilfrid arrived in time to stop his master in order to prevent the murder. Hans blows a hunting horn. The participants of the hunt, alarmed by the unexpected signal, led by the duke and Bathilda, leave the house. Seeing Albert in a peasant dress, they express extreme surprise; he is confused and tries to explain something.

The retinue of the duke bows so respectfully to Albert, and the noble guests greet him so cordially that the unfortunate girl has no doubts: she is 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 fiancee. Giselle tears off the golden chain given to her by Bathilda, throws it on 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, divination, oaths, words of love, dances flash in the confused 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 divination on chamomile petals flashes through her mind, and Giselle falls dead.

Night. Rural cemetery. Here comes the inconsolable Hans. Mysterious sounds are heard, swamp lights flash. Frightened, Hans flees. Moonlight falls on a shadow rising from the ground. This is the mistress of the willys Mirtha.

A circle of jeeps appears from behind the bushes. They go to the lake and seem to bathe in the moonlight. At a sign from Mirta, they surround Giselle's grave, preparing to meet her new friend. A ghostly figure of Giselle rises from the grave. A wave of Mirtha's hand, and Giselle gains strength. Her movements are getting 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 of possible danger, Albert is left alone in deep thought and grief. Suddenly he notices the figure of Giselle. Not believing his eyes, rushes to her. The vision disappears. Then it appears again and again, as if melting in the air.

The round dance of the jeep is chasing Hans. The chain of the round dance breaks, and the jeeps form a wall on the way to the lake. The forester runs along this wall, hoping to escape, but the vengeful jeeps push him into the lake, and one by one they hide.

Albert, pursued by the jeeps, emerges from the darkness. He falls at Mirta's feet, begging for salvation. But Mirta is ruthless. Stretching out her hands to her lover, Giselle runs in. She takes Albert to tombstone and protects him. Mirta, wishing to destroy Albert, orders Giselle to leave him and dance. Despite Mirtha's prohibition, Albert joins Giselle. This is their last dance. Giselle approaches her grave and disappears into it.

The jeeps surround Albert and involve him in their disastrous round dance. Exhausted, Albert falls at Mirta's feet. A clock chimes from behind the cemetery. Six hits. The jeeps lose their power and, merging with the predawn fog, disappear. The sound of horns is heard. Servants appear, sent in search of Albert. Giselle's ghost flickers for the last time.

Albert breaks up with terrible night visions and returns to reality.

"Giselle" (full name "Giselle, or Wilis", fr. Giselle, ou les Wilis) is a pantomime ballet in two acts to music by Adolphe Charles Adam. Libretto by T. Gauthier and J. Saint-Georges, choreographers J. Coralli and J. Perrot, artists P. Ciceri (sets), P. Lornier (costumes).

Characters:

• Giselle, peasant girl
• Count Albert
• Hilarion, forester (on the Russian stage - Hans)
• Bertha, mother of Giselle
• Bathilde, Albert's fiancee
• Duke of Courland, father of Bathilde
• Wilfried, Albert's squire
• Mirta, mistress of the vilis
• Two soloists, vilis
• Bride and Groom, peasants
• Peasants, peasant women, courtiers, hunters, servants, vilis

The action takes place in Thuringia during the feudal era.

History of creation

In 1840 Adan, already famous composer, returned to Paris from St. Petersburg, where he went after Maria Taglioni, a famous French dancer who performed in Russia from 1837 to 1842. Having written in St. Petersburg for Taglioni the ballet " Sea robber”, in Paris he began working on the next ballet, Giselle. The script was created by the French poet Theophile Gauthier (1811-1872) according to an old legend written down by Heinrich Heine - about vilis - girls who died from unhappy love, who, turning into magical creatures, dance to death the young people they meet at night, taking revenge on them for their ruined life. In order to give the action a non-specific character, Gauthier deliberately mixed countries and titles: referring the scene to Thuringia, he made Albert the Duke of Silesia (he is called a count in later versions of the libretto), and the father of the bride a prince (in later versions he is a duke) of Courland. The well-known librettist Jules Saint-Georges (1799-1875) and Jean Coralli (1779-1854) participated in the work on the script. Coralli ( real name- Peracchini) worked for many years at the La Scala theater in Milan, and then at the theaters of Lisbon and Marseille. In 1825 he came to Paris and from 1831 became the choreographer of the Grand Opera, then called the Royal Academy of Music and Dance. Several of his ballets were staged 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 failed. Contradictory information has been preserved about his life. It is known that he spent several years in Italy, where he met with a very young Carlotta Grisi, who, thanks to his studies, became outstanding ballerina. For Carlotta, who soon became his wife, Perrault created the party of Giselle.

The premiere of the ballet took place on June 28, 1841 on the stage of the Paris Grand Opera. The ballet masters borrowed the idea of ​​the choreographic composition from La Sylphide, staged by F. Taglioni nine years earlier and for the first time presenting the romantic concept of ballet to the public. As in "La Sylphide", which became a new word in art, in "Giselle" the cantileverness of plasticity appeared, the form of the adagio was improved, the dance became the main means of expression and received poetic spirituality. The solo "fantastic" parts included a variety of flights, creating the impression of airiness of the characters. In the same vein, the dances of the corps de ballet were decided with them. In "earthly", non-fantastic images, the dance acquired a national character, heightened emotionality. The heroines went up to pointe shoes, their virtuoso dance began to resemble the work of virtuoso instrumentalists of that time. It was in Giselle that ballet romanticism was finally established, the symphonization of music and ballet began.

A year later, in 1842, Giselle was staged at the St. Petersburg Bolshoi Theater by the French choreographer Antoine Tityus Dochi, better known as Tityus. This production largely reproduced the Parisian performance, with the exception of some modifications in the dances. Six years later, Perrot and Grisi, who arrived in 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 in different theaters old performances resumed. The published clavier (Moscow, 1985) reads: "Choreographic text by J. Perrot, J. Coralli, M. Petipa, revised by L. Lavrovsky."

Plot

Mountain village. Peasants gather for the grape festival. Hunters appear - Count Albert with a squire. Albert was far ahead of the other hunters to meet the peasant girl he liked. The Count and his squire Wilfried hide in one of the huts, and soon Albert comes out in a simple dress. Wilfried tries to dissuade the master from a risky plan, but the count orders him to leave and knocks on the door of the house where young Giselle lives. Albert declares his love for her. The love scene is interrupted by Hans. Angry, Albert drives him away. Giselle's friends appear, she captivates them in dancing - after all, she loves to dance more than anything in the world. Giselle's mother warns the girl about the danger of turning into a Wilis, but she only dances in rapture. Suddenly, a horn sounds. It's the hunt coming up. Albert hurriedly leaves so that the arrivals do not reveal his incognito. Together with the hunters, Albert's fiancee Bathilda and her father, the Duke of Courland, appear. Giselle curiously examines the luxurious outfit of a noble lady. Bathilde asks the ingenuous Giselle about her activities, and she enthusiastically talks about the grape harvest, about simple household chores, but most of all about dancing - her passion. Bathilde gives Giselle a golden chain, which she accepts with embarrassment and delight. The hunters disperse, the duke and Bathilde hide in Giselle's house. From the window of the hut in which Albert changed clothes, a forester gets out. In his hands is a precious weapon, proving the high origin of the one who turned the head of Hans's beloved Giselle. The holiday begins. Albert entices Giselle into a dance. Hans rushes between them and blows a horn, to the sounds of which hunters come with the duke and Bathilde. The deception is revealed. Giselle throws the donated chain at Bathilde's feet and falls. Unable to bear the shock, she dies.

Village cemetery at night. Hans comes to the grave of Giselle, grieving for the deceased. Mysterious rustles, swamp fires frighten the forester, and he runs away. In the track moonlight the mistress of the vilis Mirta appears. She summons the Wilis, who surround the grave, preparing to welcome their new friend with the traditional ritual. The ghostly figure of Giselle appears from the grave, her movements are obedient to Mirta's magic wand. Hearing the noise, the Wilis run away. Albert appears at the cemetery, tormented by grief and remorse. In vain, the faithful squire persuades him to leave the dangerous place. Albert stays. Suddenly he sees the ghost of Giselle in front of him and rushes after him. The Wilis, returning with Hans, make him dance. He, losing his strength, prays for salvation, but the ruthless avengers push him into the water and disappear. Soon they return with a new victim - Albert. Giselle, trying to protect her beloved, brings him to her grave, over which a cross is erected. Myrtha waves the wand, but it breaks in front of the shrine. Giselle starts a dance to give Albert a break, but he joins her. Gradually, his strength dries up; a distant ringing heralds the dawn, depriving the vilis of their strength. They are hiding. To the sound of a hunting horn, servants appear looking for the count. Giselle says goodbye to him forever and sinks underground. Albert is inconsolable.

Music

Adana's music is not just a rhythmic accompaniment to dances: it is distinguished by spirituality and poetry, creates a mood, outlines the characteristics of characters and a through musical action. “The spiritual world of the ballet characters, embodied in classical, or rather, romantic dance, is so poeticized by music, and the dynamics of stage events are so sensitively reflected in it, that ... a synthetic unity is born, based on the interpenetration of all elements that form a new quality - musically - choreographic dramaturgy,” writes the researcher of ballet art V. Krasovskaya.

L. Mikheeva

Giselle was created in the era of romantic ballet and became its pinnacle achievement. At that time, stories about the supernatural were in vogue, about young men torn between everyday life and seducing them with undines, sylphs and other mysterious creatures from the unreal world. The legend of the Wilis girls, deceived by their loved ones and dying before marriage, seemed made for this kind of spectacle. The French writer Theophile Gautier got acquainted with this story in the retelling of the German romantic Heinrich Heine. I liked the plot, especially since the heroine of the future ballet was there. A little earlier, this Parisian balletomaniac and critic was captivated by the debut of a charming blonde with blue eyes- ballerina Carlotta Grisi. With your desire to create new performance for her, Gautier shares with experienced screenwriter Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges, and together they compose the plot of Giselle in a matter of days. The leadership of the Paris Opera entrusted the writing of music to the experienced composer Adolphe Adam (as Adolphe Adam is traditionally called in Russian). The score was composed by him in three weeks. The theater entrusted the choreographic part to the venerable Jean Coralli, but the young choreographer Jules Perrot, at that time Grisi's husband, who essentially composed the part of the main character, made no less contribution.

Immediately after the premiere, the ballet was recognized as an outstanding achievement of the choreographic theater. Already on December 18, 1842, choreographer Antoine Tityus introduces St. Petersburg to the Parisian novelty. A little earlier, "Giselle" delights Londoners, in next year viewers of the Milanese La Scala, in 1846 - the Boston premiere in the USA.

The unique consonance of the touching plot and its choreographic embodiment made the fate of "Giselle" extremely successful. First of all, in Russia. In the 1850s in St. Petersburg, the ballet was under the supervision of one of the authors - Jules Perrot. Here is the master expressive dance continues to improve the performance: he clarifies the scene of Giselle's madness, removes the wilis dances around the cross, and modifies the pas de deux of the characters in the second act. However, the decisive correction of the dance scenes belongs to Marius Petipa (1887, 1899). The choreographer, carefully preserving the style of the romantic ballet, cut it so convincingly that today Petipa is rightfully considered the third author of the Giselle choreography. Today it is no longer possible to separate Petipa's editing from previous productions.

In this form, the performance has existed on the stage of the Mariinsky Theater for more than a hundred years, with one, but significant change. The author's finale, where the generous Giselle, leaving completely for another world, entrusts her beloved to his bride, could not be preserved in the twentieth century. The human tragedy of the heroine did not sound convincing with such an ending, clearly based on the class inequality of the heroes. New ending, apparently, was born at the turn of the 20th century: Giselle, like a morning mist, dissolves in nature, the inconsolable Albert indulges in despair.

As is well known, the democratic reforms in Europe in the second half of the 19th century drastically reduced appropriations for the maintenance of the ballet. Full-fledged troupes, which were able to adequately perform multi-act performances, remained only in Russia and Denmark (the ballets of August Bournonville were preserved here). So, thanks to the contribution of Petipa and the changed conditions, Russia became the second home of Giselle. Paris met her again in 1910. Sergei Diaghilev, as part of the Russian Seasons, showed a virtual performance from St. Petersburg. The main parts were performed by Tamara Karsavina and Vatslav Nijinsky. The success was modest: Giselle was shown only 3 times in Paris, several times in other cities and countries, but after 1914 it was not included in the repertoire of the Diaghilev troupe. An abridged version of the ballet was performed by Anna Pavlova with her touring troupe. In 1922, in Berlin, Russian emigrants created the "Russian romantic theater". One of the first productions was Giselle, edited by the former choreographer of the Mariinsky Theater Boris Romanov. In 1924, the romantic ballet was restored in Paris Opera for another famous Russian ballerina Olga Spesivtseva. The production of Petipa was recreated from his St. Petersburg notes by Nikolai Sergeev, who was director of the Mariinsky Theater before the revolution. The English ballet is also indebted to him for the production of 1932, which became the standard for many subsequent Western implementations.

Alexander Gorsky (1907) transferred the St. Petersburg version of the ballet to Moscow, supplementing it with his own creative finds. In 1944, Leonid Lavrovsky, heading Grand Theatre, made his own (very close to the Leningrad) version of the old play. It was her with the participation of Galina Ulanova that the Bolshoi Theater showed during the triumphal London tour of 1956. These tours were of decisive importance in realizing the unfading value of the old ballet throughout the world. “Russia saw in Giselle a universal human drama and immortalized it,” an eyewitness wrote. The current productions of Giselle in various ballet companies The worlds are quite close to each other and go back to the performance of Coralli-Perro-Petipa.

It is known that the dramaturgy of ballet consists of three branches: plot, musical and choreographic. Addition does not occur according to arithmetic laws, but the merits of each of the components are important.

The plot of the ballet is clear, it is diverse, but compact. Two acts, two worlds - real and fantastic. Contrasting the world of dreams, an unattainable ideal and harsh reality. Due to class inequality, the love of heroes is possible only in a ghostly world. Human love is immortal and conquers death itself. "Giselle" compares favorably with other ballets of the era of romanticism in that its heroine is a young girl, and not an undine, sylph or other mysterious creature. This is what led to the amazing diversity of the many-sided image of Giselle. And the corresponding emotional response of the viewer to her touching fate. The characters of other heroes are also quite developed and allow performing interpretation. Music of the famous opera and ballet composer Adana (1803-1856) is distinguished by a purely French elegance and melody. Asafiev noted: “How masterfully the characters are convex, how flexible in their simplicity and unpretentiousness the tunes of the dances, and how strict the drawing of these melodies with all their gentle responsiveness.” One time musical basis Giselle was considered rustic and not up to modern standards. Coming to their senses, they realized the charm of sincere simplicity, giving space to thoughts and dances. Today ballet music is performed in concert halls, sounds on the radio, recorded on CDs.

Yet the main wealth of Giselle is its choreography. From Perrault, the ballet got his favorite effective dance. Most of the solo and mass scenes of "Giselle", solved by means of a developed classical choreography, does not serve as divertissement decoration, but actively promotes the action of the performance. At the same time, this ballet is characterized by economy means of expression. So, the arabesque dominates everywhere - one of beautiful forms classical dance. The arabesque is the basis of the dance image of the heroine, her friends in the first act and the wilis in the second. Giselle is also distinguished by the fact that it is not a purely female ballet. Albert is not a passive partner of the ballerina, his dance echoes Giselle's dance and competes with him. The choreographic beauty of the mass scenes of the Wilis kingdom always captivates the viewer. However, you get the full impression of the ballet when the performers of the main roles adequately and convincingly interpret their parts in their own way.

With the same dance pattern, the performers of the role of Giselle often appear before the viewer as psychologically different personalities. Such diversity is a sign of a truly classical stage image. One of the stable interpretations comes from the first Giselle - Carlotta Grisi. Noted Critic at the beginning of the last century, he characterized the image as follows: “A young girl with plastic-coquettish dances in the first act of Giselle, then poetic-airy and smoky-light in the second.” Today, many ballerinas add skillfully drawn “sylphic” poses to this, emphasize the unreality heroines in the afterlife, but ballet glorifies love that conquers death. strong feeling Giselle remains human in the kingdom of the Wilis, and this is what makes her different from them.

Another tradition comes from great Olga Spesivtseva. Her Giselle was doomed from the start. Through the playfulness and spontaneity given by the role, the heroine anticipates bad rock from the very beginning. Death confirms ruthlessness real world, the selflessness of the heroine in the second act is another reproach to both Albert and all living things. This interpretation of the image of Giselle certainly influenced the interpretation of many ballerinas, but it is convincing only for a very few. The tragic gift of Spesivtseva and her personal fate are unique.

A different understanding of the role is more harmonious. Giselle, created by Galina Ulanova, is considered the most convincing here. After her London speeches in 1956, a well-known English critic noted: “One Ulanova created a complete and integral image, made this role a vision of great love, and not just a sad romance of a deceived girl. Ulanova's gaiety is simple and sincere. So when tragedy strikes, we are struck and killed along with it.” Ulanovskaya Giselle did not look heroic, but she was unbending. She, like her Maria from the Fountain of Bakhchisaray, silently taught her contemporaries not to submit to evil and violence.

Changes in the understanding of the main male party largely related to time. For the authors of the ballet, Albert was not a villain. Habitual for those times, the intrigue of the count with the villager did not necessarily have to end not only tragically, but even sadly. The circumstances turned out to be fatal, besides, the young man realized his guilt, he almost died because of his feelings. Hence the finale of the performance, which we have already spoken about. With the democratization of life, the old justification no longer served. In the thirties and fifties of the last century, many Soviet Alberts, filled with social anger, played him as an insidious seducer. The poor peasant woman was deliberately deceived, her fate was initially unenviable. Later, young performers could not, and did not want to pull on such a mask. young hero Mikhail Baryshnikov was sincerely carried away, not only Giselle believed his feelings, but also the viewer. Sincerity did not cancel the severity of guilt and the depth of remorse.

The fate of his antipode and rival Hans, an honest and attractive worker, has long and sincerely been connected with the assessment of the morality of the image of Albert. loving heroine. So why does death overtake the innocent, and not the morally guilty count? Here it is necessary to recall that Giselle is a romantic ballet. Giselle loves Albert, not Hans, and, therefore, according to the laws of romanticism, everything is decided by Love.

Created more than a century and a half ago, the ballet still arouses interest today due to the unique combination of a touching plot and a rare saturation of the performance with solo and ensemble dance.

A. Degen, I. Stupnikov