Production of Giselle Royal New Zealand Ballet

Last updated on 8 January 2025

This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase with one of these links, I recieve a small commission at no additional cost to you. Read the full Affiliate Policy.

It’s dangerous when you and your bestie live in the same city. It means money is often spent on shows and productions, and if we had enough money we’d probably go to everything. But one of the shows we and another friend went to recently was the Royal New Zealand Ballet’s production of Giselle. I hadn’t been to the ballet in years and years, so I was looking forward to be able to go. We had to read up about the story of Giselle, because none of us really knew anything about it. Here’s what the website says:

In a remote village, the beautiful and innocent Giselle is courted and captivated by a mysterious stranger. When he is revealed as Count Albrecht, betrothed to another, Giselle, broken hearted, descends into madness and death.

In the forest, the Wilis, vengeful ghosts of jilted brides, meet to greet their recently arrived sister: Giselle, who rises from her grave to join their ranks. Albrecht arrives to mourn, and the Wilis exact their revenge, compelling him to dance until he dies from exhaustion. Giselle shields him from their fury, until the first light of day brings the promise of forgiveness and redemption. – RNZB

So, as you can imagine, it was rather intense. I’m glad I did read the story though, because otherwise, I’d have no idea what was going on. The ballet can be like that – you get the gist of things, but details and some scenes can be lost on you. At least that’s what I find.

The story was heartbreaking and wonderful at the same time. But it also made me angry – seriously, why didn’t Albrecht let Giselle know he was betrothed? And she needs to man up and not die about it. Who was the other guy dancing around who actually liked her, even though she didn’t like him? And dancing someone to death seems a little harsh, doesn’t it? So many questions. But it was really nice to watch, and the skill and abilities of the dancers are insanely good. The Royal New Zealand Ballet is always highly talked about and raved about, and this was no exception.

I have this love/bore relationship with the ballet. I love the beauty, and the elegance, the costumes, and the nigh-on-impossible flexibility of them all … but at the same time, I think I love dialogue and song too much for ballet to win me over fully. I’m definitely a lover of stories, and I do know that ballet always tells a story, it’s just a different form of story-telling and not one that I will make a regular part of my life. Once in a while, it’s spectacular and I’m reminded of the reasons I love it, but I suspect it will remain that way – once in a while.

Have you been to the ballet recently? Perhaps you’ve seen Giselle?