Giselle

The National Ballet of Canada

Ballet dancers in white costumes with veils perform on stage, posing with one leg and both arms extended, facing in opposite directions.
Artists of the National Ballet of Canada in Giselle © Michael Slobodian
Artists of the National Ballet of Canada in Giselle © Michael Slobodian
Svetlana Lunkina and Harrison James in Giselle © Aleksandar Antonijevic
Artists of the National Ballet of Canada in Giselle © Michael Slobodian
Artists of the National Ballet of Canada in Giselle © Michael Slobodian
Family programming Dance Ballet with Orchestra
Giselle is the epitome of Romantic ballet.
  • In-person event
  • ≈ 2 hours · With intermission

In recognition and thanks for invaluable donor support, NAC English Theatre and NAC Indigenous Theatre reserve a limited number of complimentary seats for designated preview performances. Often, before the evening’s preview, a member of the production’s artistic team gives insights into the creative process and invites questions from donors.

With the National Arts Centre Orchestra

A jewel of the classical repertoire, Giselle has continued to captivate audiences since it was first created in Paris in 1841. Sir Peter Wright’s Giselle has been in the National Ballet’s repertoire since 1970; based on Marius Petipa’s choreography, it preserves the essence of Coralli and Perrot’s original Romantic ballet with an immersive journey into human passions and the supernatural. The bright, bucolic scenes of Act I, in which Giselle dances passionately with Albrecht at the harvest festival, give way to the ghostly nighttime scenes of Act II. The spirit world overlays the real world, dance becomes the language of the soul, and the vanishing presence of Giselle seems to defy gravity. It is a night of infinite beauty and grace. 

Giselle, a purehearted peasant girl, is seduced by Albrecht, a prince who, unbeknownst to her, is already engaged to another woman. When she learns of Albrecht’s betrayal, she loses her reason and dies. She joins the Wilis, the spirits of betrothed young women who have been betrayed by their lovers and now haunt the forest. Doomed to dance to death, Albrecht can only be saved by Giselle’s intervention as the Wilis flee the coming day. 

Performance is approximately 2 hours including intermission

Artists

  • nb-primary
    Featuring The National Ballet of Canada
  • bio-orchestra
    Featuring NAC Orchestra
  • sir-peter-wright
    Choreography and production Sir Peter Wright
  • Choreography and production Sir Peter Wright after the choreography of Jean Coralli and Marius Petipa (Based on the book by Vernoy de Saint-Georges, Gautier and Coralli)
  • Music Adolphe Adam, arranged by Joseph Horovitz 
  • Set and costume design Desmond Heeley
  • Lighting design Gil Wechsler
  • Premiere: Paris Opéra Ballet, Paris, France, June 28, 1841
  • The National Ballet of Canada Premiere: O’Keefe Centre (now Meridian Hall), Toronto, April 16, 1970
  • With support from: Giselle was produced as a memorial to the late William P. Walker and was made possible through the courtesy of many generous friends of the National Ballet. The company’s Canadian tours are made possible with the generous support of The John and Margaret Bahen Fund of The National Ballet of Canada, Endowment Foundation.