A DANCE WITH DEATH
Traditionalists will be irritated by this eccentric take on the ballet classic
Giselle
Be warned. There’s a high irritation factor in this version of Giselle. When Matthew Bourne changed the libretto
of Sleeping Beauty, it was renamed Matthew Bourne’s Sleeping Beauty. Likewise, the updated Carmen became Carmen Jones. Perhaps Ballet Ireland should have done something similar with its latest production.
The libretto and the choreography, especially in the first act, have been considerably changed from the classical ballet, with dubious results. Newcomers might think it’s darkly up-to-date; traditionalists may not be amused.
Giselle no longer dies of a broken heart; she’s knifed to death in a brawl. All within the first ten minutes. Sirens blare and the cops arrive to investigate. They sit at a table interrogating suspects; Hilarion, Giselle’s spurned lover is arrested, and the action goes into flashback to find the villain. It’s pretty difficult to choreograph people sitting down without it looking ridiculous. Which means that too much early activity is done in mime rather than in conventional dance. And using voiceover to explain the action is a poor reflection on the choreography.
Giselle’s true love, the posh boy Albrecht, sneaks into the mortuary to have a look at her, and his routine with the corpse is uncomfortably close to necrophilia,
The second act at the cemetery follows a more traditional route, with Albrecht lamenting his betrayal of Giselle. It’s very atmospheric, very spooky. I couldn’t help wondering why Giselle is brought to her tomb at night. Instead of the usual whirling spectral virgins out for revenge, the ghosts now include men, and the choreography is loaded with sinister dance-of-the-undead-style creepy routines.
The final dance between Giselle’s ghost and Albrecht caught the grief of lost love and its message of forgiveness. There is some lovely individual dancing, but the dancers in general are denied the more satisfying ensemble staging of the original Marius Petipa choreography.
The show is touring to 12 venues until May 27. See balletireland.ie for more details.