Giselle
Old Stage, the Royal Theatre, Tordenskjoldsgade 8, 1071 Cph K; performances at 20:00 on Friday, Wednesday, Nov 5, Nov 7; tickets: 70-540kr; 180 mins incl intermission

As the days become shorter and colder, what better way to spend the evening than a trip to the Royal Theatre?  Giselle is currently being performed by the Kongelige Teater and is guaranteed to warm even the coldest of hearts. Giselle is one of the most beautiful ballets, and this performance by the Royal Ballet is no exception. Directed by Sorella Englund and Nicolaj Hübbe (the ballet master of the Danish National Ballet) the performances, while being technically perfect, also contain a great deal of emotion, enabling the audience to empathise with the dancers.

It is every ballerina’s dream to dance the lead role of Giselle, but it is a role that needs to be earned; it demands much from the ballerina, who is on stage for nearly the whole performance.  The dream has become a reality for Christina Mickanek, the new solo dancer at the Danish Royal Ballet.  It cannot be easy to follow in the ballet shoes of the last dancer to take the part in Copenhagen – Silja Schandorf.  Silja is classed as one of Denmark’s top ballerinas of all time, and she danced Giselle as her final performance before retiring, at this very theatre, and not so very long ago!  While Christina may not live up to Silja’s interpretation of this part, she gives, without doubt, a fine performance.  She dances the part of Giselle with great style and beauty, and is able to convey Giselle’s emotions through both her dancing and her use of facial expressions.  Christina persuasively communicates the character of this sweet-natured farming girl who is ‘tricked’ into falling deeply in love with the nobleman, Albrecht.

The role of Albrecht is played by Ulrik Birkkjær, who performs this physically demanding part confidently.  His amazing series of entrechats actually earned applause from the audience at the premiere.  And, despite being a bit of a cad in the first act of the ballet, Ulrich manages to win over the audience by the end of the ballet by clearly imparting the anguish felt by a bereaved man who has been desperately in love, and is now desperately sorry for his actions.

Without totally giving the plot away to those who haven’t yet seen the ballet, most of the action in the second act takes place in a graveyard!  This might sound a little morbid, but it is actually the place where some of the most beautiful parts of the ballet are performed. The second act is really a feast for the eyes, with an amount of white tulle almost equalling Swan Lake.  The ‘Corps de ballet’ perform well throughout the ballet, and those who play the female spirits (the Wilis) in the second act give a faultless presentation.

The scenery used is actually quite old. It was designed by Desmond Heeley, one of the 20th Century’s most admired set designers, who also designed the costumes.  As you would expect, the scene is most fitting for its purpose (and the costumes are very beautiful), but neither can be classed as one of the most original aspects of this performance!