By Ivan Cavallari, based on Jean Coralli, Jules Perrot and Marius Petipa
With Les Grands Ballets Orchestra
The summit of romantic ballet, Giselle has never ceased to inspire choreographers and dancers from the time it was first performed by the Paris Opera Ballet, in 1841. Giselle, an innocent peasant girl, is seduced by Duke Albrecht, who is betrothed to another and hides his real identity from her. Once discovered, Albrecht’s deception inflicts a deep wound in Giselle, and she gradually sinks into madness. Alone among the Wilis—the spirits of maidens who died before their wedding—she returns to haunt the Duke’s nights.
Les Grands Ballets presents this gem of the classic repertoire, a Romantic ballet with its famous tableaux of pointes and white tutus, faithfully adapted from the original. With its powerful theme of undying love that transcends madness and death, this iconic ballet pits myth against reality, and the result is both captivating and overwhelming. It is sure to provide a memorable performance of imperishable beauty.
Total duration: 1h54, including a 20-minute intermission
Our orchestra features 43 musicians and soloists of the highest calibre, and has been playing a major role in the success of Les Grands Ballets for more than 30 years.
"The results are wonderful, a fresh, colourful and high-spirited adaptation of the romantic piece."
Ottawa Citizen
PROLOGUE
Hilarion, the village gamekeeper, is in love with Giselle. She doesn’t share his feelings, however, being secretly in love with another. Hilarion struggles to get over his one-way love, but is eaten up with a jealousy that dictates his actions and his life.
ACT 1
The peasants return from harvesting, while the village girls have gathered blooms in the forest for the Flower Festival.
Duke Albrecht of Silesia arrives with a bouquet of daisies for Giselle; he has put aside his sword to assume the look of a peasant and not reveal his true identity. He waits for Giselle at their usual meeting place in the forest. Seeing her arrive in the distance, he hides to try and surprise her.
Giselle, delighted with the flowers brought by Albrecht, twice takes a daisy to question Albrecht about his love; each time, the answer is disappointing. Albrecht, in order to please her, delicately plucks a petal and reassures Giselle of his love. Hilarion surprises the two lovers and questions them about Albrecht’s identity, which he does not know. He openly displays his jealousy and confronts the Duke of Silesia. Albrecht, momentarily confused, forgets his peasant appearance and brings a hand to his sheath, in so doing betraying his status as a nobleman.
When the villagers return for the festivities, Giselle introduces Albrecht to them. During the celebrations, she has a weak spell that gives her fiancé a glimpse into the fragile state of her health. Giselle at that moment has a vision of a being all in light, Myrtha, and is disturbed by an apparition that only she seems to have seen.
When Giselle recovers from her weakness, Albrecht sees the Duke of Courland and his court arriving in the distance. He leaves Giselle without explanation. Hilarion, who has remained in the background, discovers Albrecht’s sword and understand who he truly is. He vows to announce the truth to Giselle at the right time.
Bathilde, the true betrothed of Duke Albrecht, arrives with her father, the Duke of Courland. Looking for water, she comes upon Giselle and her mother. Bathilde asks the latter if Giselle is engaged, to which she replies in the affirmative. Dazzled by her beauty, Bathilde offers Giselle a necklace and asks if Hilarion, who has nodded off close by, is her intended. She answers no: her fiancé has taken himself off.
In the midst of the Flower Festival, peasants and friends launch themselves into a joyful dance. Albrecht and Giselle try to be alone somewhere. When they think they are, she finds the courage to kiss him – under the worried eye of her mother and the jealous eye of Hilarion. In his anger, the latter reveals the sword to Giselle, making clear Albrecht’s identity.
Bathilde and the Duke of Courland, back from their walk, overhear the conversation. Seeing the weapon, Giselle questions Bathilde, who confirms that it is indeed the sword of Albrecht, her fiancé. Giselle understands Albrecht’s lie, and is devastated. Madness overcomes her, and the heart in her weak constitution ceases to beat. Giselle dies.
ACT 2
Giselle’s mother has visited her daughter’s grave and returns home after dark.
Myrtha, the queen of the Wilis, appears surrounded by her subjects. They all welcome Giselle as one of their own. The Wilis, ghosts of young women who died after being betrayed by those they loved, haunt the forest once night falls. Seeking revenge, they cast a spell on any man unlucky enough to venture into the woods, making him dance himself to death.
Myrtha and the others disappear when they hear footsteps approaching: it’s Albrecht, in mourning, bringing flowers to Giselle’s grave. Giselle appears to Albrecht, who realizes that she has forgiven him his falsehood.
In the meanwhile, the Wilis have found Hilarion. Intent on his death, they lead him on a mad dance, but end up tiring of him and abandon him in the woods.
When Albrecht discovers the presence of the Wilis, Myrtha gives the order to take him into the forest. Sacrificing herself for the one she loves, Giselle dances until sunup to save Albrecht. The glimmer of dawn soon forces Myrtha and the Wilis to flee. Giselle, through this sacrifice, succeeds in freeing Albrecht. In peace, she disappears forever.
Latest update made on May 17, 2024. Cast is subject to change up until the start of the performance.
Giselle
Rachele Buriassi (May 30 at 8:00 p.m., June 1 at 2:00 p.m.)
Mai Kono (May 31 at 8:00 p.m., June 2 at 2:00 p.m.)
Yui Sugawara (June 1 at 8:00 p.m.)
Albrecht
Esnel Ramos (May 30 at 8:00 p.m., June 1 at 2:00 p.m.)
Roddy Doble (May 31 at 8:00 p.m., June 2 at 2:00 p.m.)
Marcel Gutiérrez (June 1 at 8:00 p.m.)
Bertha, Giselle's mother
Sahra Maira (all performances)
The Duke
James Lyttle (May 30 and June 1 at 8:00 p.m.)
Felixovich Morante (May 31 at 8:00 p.m.)
Graeme Fuhrman (June 1 and 2 at 2:00 p.m.)
Bathilde
Calista Shepheard (May 30 and June 1 at 8:00 p.m.)
Vanesa Garcia-Ribala Montoya (May 31 at 8:00 p.m.)
Anya Nesvitaylo (June 1 and 2 at 2:00 p.m.)
Hilarion
Célestin Boutin (May 30 at 8:00 p.m. and June 2 at 2:00 p.m.)
Graeme Fuhrman (May 31 and June 1 at 8:00 p.m.)
James Lyttle (June 1 at 2:00 p.m.)
Myrtha
Maude Sabourin (May 30 at 8:00 p.m., June 2 at 2:00 p.m.)
Anya Nesvitaylo (May 31 at 8:00 p.m., June 1 at 8:00 p.m.)
Vanesa Garcia-Ribala Montoya (June 1 at 2:00 p.m.)
Four Friends (women)
Kiara DeNae Felder, Alexandra Eccles, Sarah Branch, Rose Trahan (May 30 and June 1 at 8:00 p.m., June 2 at 2:00 p.m.)
Catherine Toupin, Sofia González, Anaïs Roy, Kiara Flavin (May 31 at 8:00 p.m. and June 1 at 2:00 p.m.)
Four Friends (men)
André Santos, Angel Vizcaíno, Bernard Dubois II, Théodore Poubeau (May 30 and June 1 at 8:00 p.m., June 2 at 2:00 p.m.)
Felixovich Morante, Antoine Benjamin Bertran, Thomas Leprohon, Marcel Gutiérrez (May 31 at 8:00 p.m., June 1 at 2:00 p.m.)
Peasant Women
Sofia González, Catherine Toupin, Maude Fleury, Tatiana Lerebours, Anaïs Roy, Carrigan MacDonald (May 30 and June 1 at 8:00 p.m., June 2 at 2:00 p.m.)
Peasant Men
Antoine Benjamin Bertran, Bernardo Betancor, Oscar Lambert, François Gagné, Thomas Leprohon, Étienne Delorme (May 30 and June 1 at 8:00 p.m., June 2 at 2:00 p.m.)
The Procession (men)
Élias Roldan, Arnaud Mongeon, Benjamin Poirier, Léo Lussier (all performances)
The Procession (women)
Claudia Colonna, Claudia Garcia, Laura Vande Zande, Élodie Scholtes-Labrecque (all performances)
Myrtha
Maude Sabourin (May 30 at 8:00 p.m., June 2 at 2:00 p.m.)
Anya Nesvitaylo (May 31 and June 1 at 8:00 p.m.)
Vanesa Garcia-Ribala Montoya (June 1 at 2:00 p.m.)
Giselle
Rachele Buriassi (May 30 at 8:00 p.m., June 1 at 2:00 p.m.)
Mai Kono (May 31 at 8:00 p.m., June 2 at 2:00 p.m.)
Yui Sugawara (June 1 at 8:00 p.m.)
Albrecht
Esnel Ramos (May 30 at 8:00 p.m., June 1 at 2:00 p.m.)
Roddy Doble (May 31 at 8:00 p.m., June 2 at 2:00 p.m.)
Marcel Gutiérrez (June 1 at 8:00 p.m.)
Hilarion
Célestin Boutin (May 30 at 8:00 p.m. and June 2 at 2:00 p.m.)
Graeme Fuhrman (May 31 and June 1 at 8:00 p.m.)
James Lyttle (June 1 at 2:00 p.m.)
Two Willis
Aurora De Mori, Kiara DeNae Felder (all performances)
Willis - Corps de ballet
Alexandra Eccles, Carrigan MacDonald, Rose Trahan, Maude Fleury, Tatiana Lerebours, Anaïs Roy, Catherine Toupin, Kiara Flavin, Tuesday Rain Leduc, Sofia González, Sarah Branch, Calista Shepheard, Sarah-Maude Laliberté, Maeva Marcolini-Bowes, Laura Vande Zande, Élodie Scholtes-Labrecque, Claudia Colonna, Claudia Garcia (all performances)
Conductor
Jean-Claude Picard
First Violins
Veronica Thomas, solo
Céline Arcand, associate
Pascale Frenette
Daniel Godin
Élise Lortie
Frédéric Lefebvre
Valérie Belzile
Natalia Kononova
Line Deneault
Josiane Breault
Second Violins
Marie-Josée Arpin, solo
Solange Bouchard, assistant
Anne Saint-Cyr
Émilie Rabaraona
Marie-Claude Massé
Daphnée Sicennes Richard
Maude Fréchette
Félix Savignac
Violas
Véronique Potvin, solo
Catherine Arsenault, assistant
Bojana Milinov
Mihaela Tistu
Martine Gagné
Justin Almazan
Cellos
Annie Gadbois, solo
Carla Antoun, assistant
Monika Risi
Laurence Leclerc
François Toutant
Julie Trudeau
Double basses
Marc Denis, solo
Richard Capolla, assistant
Pierre Pépin
Yannick Chênevert
Flutes
Ariane Brisson, solo
Jean-Philippe Tanguay + piccolo
Oboes
Kirsten Zander, solo
David Jomphe
Clarinets
Zaven Zakarian, solo
François Martel
Bassoons
Lise Millet, solo
Carmelle Préfontaine
Horns
Jocelyn Veilleux, solo
Maude Lussier
Laurence Latreille Gagné
Lyne Santamaria
Trumpets
Benjamin Raymond, solo
Juliette Bégin
Tazmyn Eddy, solo cornet
Aura West, cornet
Trombones
Martin Ringuette, solo
Nicolas Blanchette
Hugo Bégin, solo
Tuba
Scott Cheyne, solo
Timpani
François St-Jean, solo
Percussion
Catherine Meunier, solo
Léo Guiollot
Anne-Julie Caron
Harp
Annabelle Renzo, solo
Orchestra Manager
Richard Capolla
ABOUT THE SHOW
Duration
Act I: 42 min
Intermission: 20 min
Act II: 52 min
Total duration: 1h54
LES GRANDS BALLETS
Artisans at the theater
Head of Makeup: Sarah Ladouceur
Makeup Artist: Janie Drouin
Head of Hair and Wigs: Stéphanie Bourgault
