70 replies to this topic

[atm711]

Eugene Berman's costumes were used for a 50's Ballet Theatre Giselle.  I don't remember any "folk" costumes--but the whole production was in shades of blue and black...In the 2nd Act the Wilis long tarletans were shades of blues, going into black.

What I do remember from that production was Nora Kaye as Giselle---Now, there was a "Giselle From Hell"




[This message has been edited by atm711 (edited February 26, 2001).]

[atm711]

About those Wili dresses made of Cellophane....I suspect it might have been the Mordkin Ballet's production with Lucia Chase...(Ah-g-g- another "Giselle from Hell")

[atm711]

It has been a wild ride with all these dazzling versions!!   Gautier, himself, has other thoughts about Giselle---at one time he thought of adapting Victor Hugo's poem "Fantomes" for the first act:

"I had thought of making the first act consist of a mimed version  of Victor Hugo's delightful poem.  One would have seen a beautiful ballroom belonging to some prince; the candles would have been lighted, but the guests would not have arrived; the Wilis, attracted by the joy of dancing in a room glittering with crystal and gliding, would have shown themselves  for a moment in the hope of adding to their number.  The Queen of the Wilis would have touched the floor with her magic wand to  fill the dancers feet with an insatiable desire for  contredanses, waltzes, galops, and mazurkas.  The advent of the lords and ladies would have made them fly away like so many vague shadows.  Giselle, having danced all that evening excited by the magic floor and the desire to keep her lover from inviting other women to dance, would have been surprised by the cold dawn like the young Spanish girl, and the pale Queen of the Wilis, invisible to all, would have laid her icy hand on her heart"

With this scenario, I wonder what he would have done with the 2nd act....bring on the peasants?

[cargill]

I'm afraid every idea I can come up with has already been used!  Giselle in an insane asylum, Giselle in a concentration camp, Giselle in the 20's.  Even a gender switch with male wilis isn't a new idea.  I guess like all those opera and theater directors who dress every army as WWII soldiers, I am completely at a loss for new ideas.  But what about a lesbian Giselle who runs off with Bathilde?

[cargill]

I don't know if this qualifies for Manhatnik's original question, but I have always wondered what Moyna and Zulma's stories were, much less Myrtha's.  The do have names, and so should have stories.  In one of the original versions, weren't they in some sort of a folk costume--oriental?  Maybe one escaped from a harem.  Lots of ballet potential there.  You could have a Pasha, and slave dealers and maybe some pirates--well I guess I still don't have an original idea!

[cargill]

Alexandra, That was great choreography, but shouldn't Albrecht's turns be of the veryveryfast variety ending very very s l o w l y, to show that he is conflicted?  And while you are cribbing from other choreographers, who about Hilarion doing the original Nijinsky Sherezade fall on his neck death.  And what about the poor dogs in the first act that just trot on and off in some productions?  I think they should get to dance too, possibly in borrowed Midsummer costumes.  For social commentary, they could kill a stag on stage while the awful aristos cheer them on.  And somehow or another, there has to be a connection between Myrtha and Albrecht's mother.

[samba38]

Moyna and Zulma? I always supsected they were great aunts annoyed because they didn't get invited to the seder last year.

[salzberg]

I suppose one could have the Wilis appearing in an elevator. . . .

[Nanatchka]

I am reminded here
of Starr Danias touring in Act II (Victorianish costumes) Giselle, it was really pretty vile, but on to something I will make up:

THE IRISH GISELLE

The Villagers are Irish  Step Dancers, and do various Riverdance routines. Ditto for the Wilis.The score is the Riverdance Album, or of its kind, but played "live" on a huge pumped up sound system. None of this--dance or music-- is at all authentic; it must be glossy and charmless. Also, the music must be very loud. Meanwhile, the story stays the same, and Giselle is still a ballerina. However, instead a flower Does He Love Me? number, she does a little Shamrock Dance. Just for variety, Myrtha wears a Flamenco Outfit and character shoes, and does a nasty little Spanish dance. (Or you can combine the items in the thread, and make them all step dancing lesbian drug addicts. What about a transexual Hilarion?)

or:

LEATHER GISELLE, also known as L'il Giselle

Bondage. Motorcycles. Guns. Club scene. Puff Daddy Albrecht. G.Lopez Bathilde. L'il Kim Giselle. Music is Rap.

I just remembered that I saw a Romeo and Juliet that had a German Shepard on a Watch Tower. I am not making this up.Whenever we have a thread like this, I worry that someone will read it and do it, but really, they already have....I mean, how about we make Mytha a Giant Lizard....

[Nanatchka]

But Alexandra, Manhattnik: you left out the primo additional element(s) to  complete your hellish scenario(s). I don't know why it hasn't occurred to me before. I can summon it up in a sentence, but first a warning to Cargill to put down her cup of tea:

Enter Albrecht, accompanied by JESTER(S).

[Nanatchka]

They will wear jester suits, if they are jesters. Nothing else will do. But for the others,why not have the men wear feather pants? Or even the women? Why not have Myrtha dresssed as a giant iguana? In other words, let's just borrow the costumes from other productions, not neccessarily of Giselle. That would be soooooo obvious of us. Mouse Willis, anyone? We can also borrow from the plots, while we are at it. Just think: The Nutcracker Giselle. Les Giselleurs (that's with snow scenes and "skating). Romeo and Giselle. And my personal favorite, Willi Lake.

[Nanatchka]

It isn't off topic if Myrthe is the Dairy Queen....

[Manhattnik]

I was thinking it might be fun to start a topic on "Giselle from Hell."

You're an up-and-coming choreographer/artistic-director. You have a big
ballet company, all the stars at in the world at your disposal, a huge
budget, a desire to impress the world with your vast imagination and
innovation. And no taste at all.

How would you reset Giselle to show off your special talents?

Don't feel constrained to use the Adam score. Change the period and location
at will. Who needs a conventional male/female romance. I'd say you could
make Hilarion the hero of the ballet, but Vasiliev's done that already.
(Anyone ever notice how in some productions it's the very cross that
Hilarion ties together in the beginning of Act II which later saves
Albrecht?)

[Manhattnik]

Then Albrecht returns, teary-eyed, to Wilfred....

[Manhattnik]

Cargill, didn't Berman's lost, lamented costumes for Giselle have each of the Wilis in her own "national" folk-dance attire?