ABT's Giselle At The Segerstrom: Love, Death And Dancing

Forbes

a day ago

Chloe Misseldine as Giselle in Giselle. Photo by Laura Sukowatey, Courtesy ABT
'Youth is wasted on the young,' the old saying goes. But it is not wasted on Chloe Misseldine, 22, who danced the lead role of Giselle at last Saturday's matinee American Ballet Theatre (ABT) performance at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Orange County. Misseldine brought to Giselle a rarely seen youth, freshness, and innocence. She combined the charm and naivete of a Disney princess with the precision and technique of a star ballerina, which she is quickly becoming.
Giselle, one of the oldest story ballets, has two parts: In the First Act, Giselle, a young peasant girl is seduced by Albrecht, a nobleman in disguise. When Albrecht's true identity is revealed by Hilarion, the peasant boy who loves her, and that Albrecht is already engaged to a countess, Giselle dies of heartbreak.
The Second Act takes place at night at Giselle's grave where spirits called Willis dance, led by their Queen. Hilarion appears and the Willis entice him into the underworld. Albrecht also visits Giselle's grave and the same threatens to happen to him. However, Giselle appears in spirit form and dances with him until daybreak, saving his life.
Chloe Misseldine as Giselle in Giselle. Photo by Laura Sukowatey, Courtesy of ABT
Giselle has been performed as a woman enraptured, swept up in a passion, blinded by it and betrayed. Over the years, ballerinas, most often older than Misseldine, have rendered Giselle as intense, passionate, erotic, even psycho. However, the story itself is about a young innocent, and that is how Misseldine animates her.
Giselle is unique in that its two acts are so different. The first act is as much theatrical performance as ballet with the dancers in their costumes signaling their social status as peasant or part of the noble retinue – there are even two beautiful Borzoi dogs that take the stage (and behaved perfectly). The first act requires a good amount of acting, pantomime really, and Misseldine was delicate in her gestures but broadcast them convincingly to the audience.
There are a few set pieces in the first act that give the dancers their moments to shine. Yoon Jung Seo and Paulina Waski were stand outs in their pas de deux. Aran Bell as Count Albrecht was convincingly noble, romantic, and paired well with Misseldine. However, the second act, which is total fantasy, was where the great strength of this ABT cast was on full display.
First of all, when you are watching ABT you are seeing a corps de ballet with such a deep bench of talent. Their talen brings the production to a higher level of excellence. Also, Ingrid Thoms playing the Queen of the Willis had a commanding presence and was excellent. Patrick Frenette as Hilarion demonstrated great passion and powerful technique as he came under the Willis' power. And in the second act, Misseldine and Bell were so well matched and really let fly, bringing a poignancy to love, death, and dancing.
Giselle has been continuously performed since its debut in Paris in 1841. Successive generations have adapted or restaged it, but its appeal to dancers and audiences remains, and will continue to be performed because, as Misseldine told me in a recent interview, Giselle is 'about forgiveness, about resilience, and about love.' That never goes out of style.