There are certain ballets that are known, at least in name, to even non-ballet aficionados. Amongst the best-known titles is Giselle. This ballet was first performed in 1841 in Paris. Every ballet company in every part of the world has, at one point or another, performed Giselle. It’s a role that every girl who has ever dreamed of being a ballerina has hoped would be in her future.
Enter Dada Masilo who is a South African dancer and choreographer. She has created unique and feminist versions of Romeo & Juliet, Swan Lake and Carmen. She was commissioned to come up with a new version of Giselle and that’s the ballet that is being performed starting on Thursday at The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts.
In Masilo’s version the title character dies of heartbreak and comes back to seek revenge on her lover. This production has music by Philip Miller. It also contains adult language and content and some nudity. This isn’t your grandparents’ Giselle. But it will no doubt intrigue with the key change of making Giselle a very active character in her own story.
