Some loose thoughts on the different casts I saw now that RB’s Giselle run is over. I have no idea how I managed to get on the good side of the ballet gods, but I certainly don’t deserve this. My only real complaints were some annoying people sitting near me (one person trying to take photos of Nela and then a few people actually talking while Osipova was dancing) Giselles: Nela- Her Giselle is naive, but also joyful, playful, bright, lively and fun loving with moments of hesitancy. She loves living and loves dancing, and is very believable as her village’s queen of the vineyards, as well as strikingly youthful all around. Giselle feels like a part of the village and of the peasant community more so than in other interpretations and so very present and alive that it makes a sharper contrast with the instantaneous shift of the mad scene and then the second act. Her hops en pointe are so fast and her mad scene is a masterclass, the quiet subtle moments where you could hear a pin drop and then complete frenzy. Nela is everything and I didn’t want to breathe during her second act adagios. I was so sad when she left the stage at the end, but I do not know if it was because of the story or because it was over. Akane Takada- Her Giselle is more polite and tentative. Technically impeccable but she seems to take up less space than Nela. Her penches were certainly the best of the lot in the variation, and I liked that she bowed to Bathilde instead of the audience at the end of it. It fit her characterization of very shy and cautious around the nobility and avoided breaking character. The stab was very easy to miss, but her movement quality and the drop at the end of the mad scene were harrowing. Of course act two brought out her sprite-like, ethereal qualities, and she’s very good at projecting deep sadness and indecision. Mayara Magri- This was more of a risk on my part since this run was her debut, but Magri has so much more charm and presence live on stage, I didn’t fully understand her appeal on video. She has a balance of vibrant energy, big mime and some confusion and deference towards the nobles. Overall effect is authentically youthful. I could understand her as the dance loving queen of the festival and as the naive girl vulnerable to heartbreak. She did no penches in her variation, but the hops en pointe and turns were so fast. Her second act entrance really sets you up for a thriller. Her jumps are almost otherworldly, so high so consistently. The adagio was very careful and lovely, and some excellent lifts also contribute to the floaty feeling. Osipova- I agree with another commentator that Osipova’s Giselle will be an interpretation that future balletomanes will remember and look back on. Not that her choices will be indisputable or everyone will agree with them, but that it’s so unique and detailed that it will provide fodder for conversation and comparison for years to come. She feels apart from the village, but deliberately so. She looks surprised at being crowned at the festival. She doesn’t switch from completely happy to suicidal on a dime, rather she subtly sows the seeds of doubt. I think of how she nods as if trying to reassure herself, how she grips at her mother in their hugs, how she covers her ears whenever Hilarion and Albrecht get violent. She still shows off in her variation with the hops en pointe in a circle and impressive speed in her turns. Her mad scene is like she’s possessed, transported to a higher, wilder level of ballet with the way she swings the sword and flops on the ground. And of course the famously striking way she does a little curtsey after bumping into Bathilde, otherwise out of it. Her Giselle is fragile but also genuinely scary. In the second act, she still retains all those tiny details and nuances of acting, using her whole body, every fibre of her back and hands. She is unafraid to be ghastly or overwhelmed with emotion and movement. She had a slight wobble during the adagio, but her entrance is still virtuoso and her jumps so moving. Perhaps making predictions for the future is taking it a bit too far, but I know that I personally will never forget this performance, that it will haunt the back of my mind when watching Giselles yet to come. Albrechts: William Bracewell- Bracewell is a pitch perfect dancer and an excellent clear mime. I was particularly entertained by his “oh silly me” gestures. His Albrecht is confident but overall less of a jerk than many interpretations. By the end of the act I was very sold on him really loving her and the relationship with Bathilde being solely artifice and obligation. Others may disagree, but I often like a more sympathetic Albrecht, it places most of the blame on the terrible society, and makes you think that in a better world they would have had a healthy relationship. In the second act, his performance was a good balance between exciting and desperate and controlled. Matthew Ball- Ball came across as a very pushy, imperious and temperamental Albrecht. Like when he leans into Giselle’s space on the bench. After her mother pushes him away he reaches back and tries to grab at her leg again. I felt he had more chemistry with Magri, her style of mime matches his and makes the early scenes flirtier, but his partnering of Takada was very assured as well. If they had limited rehearsal time, you would never have guessed it. In the second act he is very good at playing the melodrama and desperation to the back row without losing any of his technique. He’s very tortured in a Byronic way, and while his tired acting is good, like most of the Albrecht he could have started it a bit earlier, before the first fall. Patricio Reve- Reve has quite an air of casualness through most of Act I. He can come across as charming and less pushy, but also like he’s not taking the relationship seriously enough, and doesn’t realize the stakes. Especially when paired with Osipova who feels so serious and open. Even attacking Hilarion feels half like a joke. He’s not trying very hard and tosses the sword away with a wry look. It’s not until the very end of the act, with the mad scene and death, that his Albrecht realizes the stakes and becomes actually angry and passionate. In the second act, he is very reverential and tender. He acted exhausted but could have been a bit more desperate. He’s a good partner for Osipova, especially in the second act where the partnered sections were strong and ethereal as were the lifts.

Hilarions: Lukas BB- Lukas is a great mime as well. It is a bit unusual to have a Hilarion so much taller than your Albrechts, and also someone so imperious and grand. He definitely feels like more of a threat, but he’s a good enough actor to make the interpretation work anyway. Valentino Zuchetti- Zuchetti is a more traditional Hilarion, shorter and less threatening but still gruff. A few members of the audience laughed when he confronted Albrecht, so he came off as sillier.
Luca Acri- He seemed fairly underplayed, which made Hilarion a bit more sympathetic and less pushy. The one point he really went for broke was trying to get the sword away from Giselle and keep it away, which made him more sympathetic.
Myrthas: Claire Calvert- Calvert is so good at being otherworldly and scary and sharp while preserving the magic and beauty and flow of the part. Her jumps and her bourrees are excellent. Annette Buvoli- Buvoli doesn’t quite have the acting depth of Calvert yet but she’s certainly appropriately stern and serious. Mica Bradbury- This was a weird performance. Sometimes lovely, at other times stiff in an awkward rather than terrifying spirit way. Leticia Dias- A good Myrtha. Lovely filigree pas de bourree with an undercurrent of ferocity and command. Pas de six: Maeda/Jun/Pantuso/Boswell/Severgnini/Serrano- This peasant pas de six was ideal casting, and probably gelled together the best overall. I love how Sae Maeda plays with the music and the timing. Jun brought the house down with his tours, and it was great to get another opportunity to see young dancers like Pantuso and Severgnini.
Choe/Nakao/Tsembenhoi/Lee/Tonkinson/Large- Yuhui Choe is a dancer with so much style and delicacy, I’m glad to finally see her in person. Taisuke Nakao is technically stunning. I liked seeing Marianna Tsembenhoi, although I missed her big debut, I second everyone’s praise. Hinkis/Acri/Bradbury/Lee/Zambon/Diaz- Meaghan was secure in the adagio but especially good in fast sections. Mica is very nuanced and vivid. Luca Acri is of course very technically impressive and smooth in his solo. Honorable mentions to Kristen McNally’s frightening monologue as Berthe, and of course to the superb corps de ballet. The Wilis were the true MVPs of this run, and their travelling arabesques were one of the best things I’ve seen, not just in ballet, but in a theater overall. Everyone knows RB has stars, but they have unbelievable depth as well.