Customer Reviews

Adam - Giselle / La Scala

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

A spectacular, stunning Giselle!

This DVD version of Giselle was recorded live at La Scala. It stars Alessandra Ferri as Giselle and Massimo Murru as Albrecht: both give stellar performances.

There are the many wonderful moments in this production: I'll touch briefly on a few....

-Ferri is breathtaking in her interpretation of the main character: her dancing is vibrant and her acting and expressions capture the essence of the naive, love-stuck young girl in Act I, and then, as the protective Wili for the final Act.

-The costumes and sets are beautiful. For example, in the village scenes of Act I, the corps de ballet wear gold and rust colored outfits , while Ferri,as Giselle, wears a sky blue skirt with a navy blue top that makes her stand out from the other performers. She is simply stunning, your eye cannot help but be drawn to her in this setting.

-There is something about ballet done before a live audience. This "Giselle" is so enchanting, you could really appreciate the reaction of the audience: enthusiastically clapping and cheering, almost before some of the scenes ended.

- And last but not least, there is the music by Adolphe Adams: melodies so beautiful and haunting that when combined with the choreography for this work, have resulted in a ballet that has become an ageless masterpiece. What a thrill it must have been to have been there that night.

Technically, I thought the cameras were well placed and film editing was, with one or two exceptions, well done. The DVD has superb video and audio, and the menu allows you to go to any scene you like.

All in all a recording of Giselle of the highest quality.

P.S. If I had to pick a Giselle to buy, this is the DVD I'd recommend. The other notable offering of Giselle is the movie version by the American Ballet Theatre starring Carla Fracci and Eric Bruhn. The dancing is excellent in the ABT production but the film editing is poor. (to the point of distraction at times)

I ordered what I thought would be "Dancers" since the reviews are all of that movie and so is the cast list. Was I ever pleasantly surprized!! This DVD is actually by the Teatro alla Scala with Alessandra Ferri as Giselle. It is like being there. Fantastic photography. You are in a box seat, best in the house. The main performers -- Alessandra Ferri, Massimo Murru, Isabel Seabra, and Maurizio Vanadia -- are often better than the Bolshoi video I have. The staging and costumes are wonderful. The music was by the Orchestra of the Teatro alla Scala under the direction of Paul Connelly. I was happy to see that the dancers looked happy and healthy, unlike the anorexics at ABT and NYCB. The corps de ballet, on the other hand -- while generally very good -- looked like some of its members had been shanghai-ed from classes. My wife studied at the San Francisco Ballet Company and she thinks it is the best Giselle she has ever seen. The live audience went wild, and I have to agree completely with them. If you enjoy good ballet, you won't want to miss this one.

Of the recorded performances I know, this one is easily the best looking -- not only the production, which is lovely, but also the picture quality. The superb new DV tape is really something, giving in-theater recordings almost the same picture quality as film. Sharp and razor clear imagery and with beautiful color saturation too.
The dancing is of a exceptionally high quality. All three leads are excellent -- they have great talent founded on firm classical technique. The LaScala ensemble work is marvelous -- virtually a match for that of the Kirov and much superior to the often slovenly ensemble seen in ABT performances. The Peasant Pas is the best I've ever seen -- the two kids are wonderful -- terrific dancers, full of life and spirit, and the best looking too.
Additionally, the score is performed without the hideous cuts that totally ruin the ABT production (also on DVD) with Fracci and Bruhn. The LaScala orchestra, of course, is sensational. I totally agree with Riccardo Muti that the LaScala orchestra is one of the two best in the world. It's very nice to hear Adam's lovely score performed on such a high level.
The only recorded performances of Giselle I know that are on the same level as this one are the ABT one with Makarova and Baryshnikov (the best dancing, and an uncut performance) and the Kirov, which, besides the expected superb dancing, is a wonderful old production complete with flying Willis (also uncut).
Beware of the Fracci/Bruhn performance -- the cuts are brutal and the TV style direction is so tacky it is close to sickening.
For a Giselle that truly reflects the chaste and delicate nature of the work -- get this wonderful LaScala performance.

This is a solid, classically rendered performance of Giselle by a decent cast. The one brilliantly shining star is Alessandra Ferri, who, in my opinion, is among the best at portraying the most emotional and expressive of ballerinas. This performance, which took place at Teatro alla Scala in Milan, around 1995-96, caught Ms. Ferri in her well-seasoned prime. She's a joy to watch.

As for the ballet, nothing really stood out. Besides Ms. Ferri, none of the other cast members caused me to jump for joy ... no stupendous efforts; just basic dancing. Neither did I see anything to make me gasp. The stage design and costumes looked pretty familiar, the lighting was fine, and the music came through clearly. One-word summary for everything: satisfactory.

Unfortunately, the video problems were serious. The disc cover notes say "Recorded Live in HDTV," but the transfer to DVD was problematic, with one decidedly bad result: the outline of the dancers blurs whenever there is movement. I could overlook this on some occasions, but the glitch persisted.

The camera editing was good, but not great. There were several instances during the dancing where some close-ups made me miss the full head-to-toe posture that I prefer when I'm watching dance. This may not bother other viewers who like to get as many closer-up views of the characters' faces as possible.

Another glaring video distraction had to do with a particular camera that was positioned in the back of the orchestra pit, right about at stage level. Aside from having way too low of a vantage point, this camera created a distortion characteristic of wide-angle lenses, whereby the images at the edge of the frame move in rotational fashion as the camera pans from side to side. Further, the camera was operated remotely, and seemed to swivel in one plane, thus creating a kind of "robotic" movement. I don't understand why this was even used, since there was another camera, also centrally located but higher up, which rendered a far more natural perspective.

I would recommend this DVD to most viewers except some ballet fanatics and others who are sensitive to flawed video work.

..beautifully danced, handsomely costumed...supremely romantic..
there is not much more one could want from "Giselle". All the
principals are excellent...and both Albrecht and Hilarion are
warm interesting men. Giselle is love's young dream...and Act II
has enough ladies in white dresses dancing on their toes in the
moonlight to fill everyone's dreams. If you want ONE lovely ballet to enjoy at home...this is it...the divertisements are
charming and it is well worth many watchings. I hope that you
enjoy it as much as I have.

This performance of Giselle is wonderful in all respects. Particularly noteworthy, in my opinion, is the excellent way it was photographed so that the viewer always has the best seat in the house. The dancing, sets, and costumes are all first rate.
Buy it, you won't be disappointed.

Overall a good performance by Alesandra Ferri in a performance at at La Scala. I did not rate it as highly as some of the DVDs of other full length performances of other ballets currently available for several reasons. First, the corp de ballet and the rest of the cast (including Albrecht) do not deliver the same level of performance as Ferri. This is especially disappointing in Act II with the Wilis. Second, the camera direction is awkward. At various points throughout the ballet, the camera is shooting from an angle that makes the viewer feel as if you are sitting in the orchestra pit rather than in an audience seat. This perspective and the feeling of being forced to "look up" at the dancers at such a sharp angle detracts from the performance at times. Other scenes and sequences are shot from a perspective that is reminescent of the view from the upper balcony. This would be fine and in fact is welcome provided a wide angle shot is necessary to fully appreciate certain parts of the ballet. Unfortunately, this wide angle view is used haphazardly at times throughout the ballet filiming--you wish you had it for the certain scenes and can't understand why you are being "forced" to view the performance from that perspective during scenes that do not require it. Third, there are no special features at all on the DVD. While special features are never a huge part of ballet DVDs, I would think that they could at least put some information about the dancers, the ballet company or the ballet's history itself. Still, the more noteable dance sequences such as the peasant pas de duex, Giselle's solos in Acts I and II and the Act II pas de duex are overall well executed. I enjoyed watching the performance on this DVD but I probably would not reach for it to watch again if it was a part of my DVD ballet collection and I had other ballet options from which to choose.

Alessandra Ferri made an admirable performance starring the well known ballet. Her amazing contour, the sheerness, sweeping flair, emotive feature is supported by his formidable partner as well as the admirable choreography and overwhelming musical accompaniment.

I recommend it without reserves.

The tragedy is that the most beloved moment of Giselle, when the Wilis cross each other like ships sailing in the night, (their long skirts fanned in a that stunning arabesque...) is utterly destroyed by the camera work. You cannot watch this scene unfold or be griped by the subtle crescendo, because the camera cuts over to the right, then back out, then a clip of a few ballerinas taken from the orchestra pit, and before you know it, you've missed it all. I purchased the DVD for love of this scene; what a shame.
Sometimes the beauty is the whole, not the parts, particularly when the Wilis dance. With so many stray close-ups, you really never come away with that sense that the Wilis embody one mind with 2-dozen pairs of toe shoes (which is part of what makes them so endearing). Likewise, in a pas de deux, when dancers cross each other and execute mirrored steps, having the camera zoom in one only one of them takes away the entire effect. Alessandra and the villager soloists are exceptional dancers. Albrecht, Myrtha and the Wilis are just mediocre in terms of talent. Nonetheless, being one of most recent version of Giselle on DVD (1996), the picture and sound and quality are superior to performances recorded in the 1960s, -70s or -80s. It contains a few nice touches, like the way Albrecht & Giselle stand close and almost kiss in Act I, and the way they embrace each other as part of the choreography coming out of a lift in Act II. This is the only version where Giselle's weak heart is portrayed prior to the mad scene. Also unique and poignant are the cold glares Albrecht receives 1) from his betrothed Bathilde and 2) from Giselle's mother upon the discovery of his deceit. Typically, Giselle's feeling of betrayal and humiliation is the only one presented, so this performance gains a great deal of substance by having Albrecht face the others whom he's cheated. You may want to own this version simply because of Alessandra Ferri (2nd cousin to Gumbi)!

At the time of its release I felt this was the best overall Giselle, combining youthful freshness, exquisite performances, direction and camerawork. I found it extremely moving to see a performance where both principals still look young, involved and excited by dance and love! There are no weak elements in this. Choreography, performances, sets, lighting, camerawork, everything works. Plus this is a live audience which adds an overlay of involvement and excitement! I would have given this 6* if I could!

More recently a couple of new productions have been released in blu-ray, most notably the one with the Dutch National Ballet, which I feel is both artistically and technically superior. See my review of this one, with anna Tsygankova and Jozef Vargo for an update.