GISELLE at ABT

Wednesday July 9, 2008 matinee - Today's GISELLE at ABT was originally planned as a joint debut for Stella Abrera and David Hallberg in the leading roles. Sadly, Stella has been injured all season and when it became clear that she wouldn't be able to perform, the role of Giselle was assigned to Irina Dvorovenko. But then early last week I stopped by the Met to pick up a casting update and found that there had been yet another shift: Xiomara Reyes and Herman Cornejo were now listed, with Herman making a role-debut as Albrecht. I was sorry that David Hallberg's first Albrecht has been delayed; he wrote at The Winger about the harrowing episode (during a performance of BAYADERE) which induced him to take a couple of weeks off. It's always unfortunate when a dancer or singer we have been looking forward to seeing in a specific role is forced to relinquish a performance but I feel certain David will have his Albrecht-opportunity in the very near future. I greatly enjoyed seeing Herman in SLEEPING BEAUTY earlier this summer; and I haven't seen Reyes for a while. So the disappointments were put aside. (Reyes & Cornejo in an Andrea Mohin photo, above)

With Xiomara Reyes and Herman Cornejo in the leading roles, the ballet might have been subtitled The Age of Innocence. Over the years I have seen many great interpretations of the roles of Giselle and Albrecht but this was the first time I ever really thought of them as teenagers. Normally one has to suspend disbelief somewhat as prima ballerinas and danseurs in their 30s and 40s have a sporting go at pretending to be naive young lovers. No such allowances had to be made today: Xiomara and Herman were entirely credible and wonderfully appealing physically and facially. Their playful flirtation in Act I looked utterly natural. Xiomara's first little spell of illness cast a shadow over the rest of the act. Laying melodrama aside, she didn't go in for histrionics in the mad scene; instead it simply seemed that her heart broke and she died of it.  As a very young Wili in Act II she found the courage to defy the sisterhood; her opening flurry of turns and later the traveling entrechats (taken at an extremely brisk tempo) were among the many fine passages in Xiomara's Giselle, but this was a GISELLE less about steps and more about atmosphere.

Herman was magnificent. If you've seen lots of GISELLEs you have probably seen some Albrechts who are just having a lark with Giselle - stringing her along, certainly fond of her but knowing all along that he'll eventually return to the reality of court life. Herman didn't play it that way; there was no trace of calculation in his Albrecht. He was eagerly and sincerely in love with his village lass and hadn't thought far enough ahead to foresee the consequences of his true identity being exposed. In the second act he was a young man desperately in need of forgiveness; Herman so beautifully expressed the hesitant joy of being with Giselle again, knowing it could not last. Her tenderness and steadfastness as he passed through his ordeal was so moving. Herman danced the great solo with effortless brilliance but refused to let it become just a virtuoso set-piece; later his two diagonals of flying beats were uncanny. Herman ended the ballet clutching Giselle's flowers to his chest, wide-eyed and trying to hold onto that final vision of her love. Watching Herman dance is a complete pleasure.

I'm always moved by GISELLE but I can't remember ever sobbing like this (thank goodness I was alone in my box!) both after Act I and at the end. Xiomara moved me even further during the bows when she accepted a large bouquet and immediately knelt and presented it to Herman.

A highlight of Act I was a  finely-danced Peasant Pas de Deux from Mikhail Ilyin and Sarah Lane. Mikhail's clean air turns, cushioned landings and musicality lined up nicely with Sarah's gloriously 'upright' pirouettes, charming balances and her impressive extension. With her dark hair in the classic Romantic-ballerina style and her luminous eyes, Sarah put me in mind of a young Carla Fracci - the great Italian ballerina who was one of the most extraordinary Giselles I ever saw. I don't doubt that Sarah Lane will be dancing the title role in due course. Sarah and Mikhail put such a nice 'finish' on everything. Isaac Stappas was a powerful, no-nonsense Hilarion. Some people think Hilarion is a bad guy but I disagree: he loves Giselle and sees no impediment to marrying her and caring for her til this outsider moves in on his territory. Exposing Albrecht's duplicity is what any red-blooded man would do when he sees someone trying to take his girl away. He doesn't know that his plan will backfire. Isaac acted strongly and without melodramatics; and in Act II when he had to dance, he did that very well also. Another jewel in Act I was Susan Jones as Berthe, Giselle's mother. Looking cozily maternal, Susan's mime was vivid but not overstated: it read clearly all the way up to the top of the House. Melissa Thomas looked stunning in Bathilde's red gown. One tricky moment occurred when Herman threw his sword down and it broke; of course the sword is needed in the Mad Scene and so one of the corps boys managed to substitute his own sword and whisk away the broken one almost unnoticed.

ABT's Wilis scene is very impressive - though they could get rid of the cave at the back of the stage. Gillian Murphy was a cool, aloof Myrthe; she danced her long opening solo with great poise - skimming bourees, floating turns and beautifully still  when she paused on her pointes. Superb dancing from Hee Seo and Melanie Hamrick as Zulma and Moyna; they contributed so much to the poetry of the scene with their polished, expressive performances. Ms. Seo put me in mind of one of my favorite Giselles, Mariana Tcherkassky, with the contained beauty of her dancing and Ms. Hamrick is an aristocratic beauty.

It was sad to see so many empty seats at such a worthwhile and moving performance. The Reyes/Cornejo/Murphy trio are slated to dance GISELLE again on Thursday July 10th. Even if you think this ballet has said everything it can ever say to you, you might want to check them out.

Comments

[jolene]

I would have loved to have filled one of those empty seats to see Herman's debut!! Thanks for posting, I knew he'd be a great Albrecht.

[Philip]

I hope you'll get to see this cast of GISELLE on the West Coast.

[Sheila]

I waas the the Met yesteday and was initially disappointed not to see David. But Xiomara and Herman were wonderful. Yes, true young love and their partnership is so honest and trusting and so real! I would love to see them as Romeo and Juliet. I am sure most people present did not know it was to be David's debut nor that it was indeed Herman's debut.

[Philip]

Hi Sheila...yes, you are so accurate in describing the 'honest and trusting' feeling that Xiomara and Herman created. It's a moving partnership and they seemed genuinely fond of one another during the curtain calls.

[jennifer]

thanks so much for your review, xiomara is an uncanny good actress, i loved her as juliet.

can you believe this is herman's debut as albrecht, it's ABOUT TIME MR. MCKENZIE

[Philip]

I think Herman is transitioning from being a virtuoso-type into being a complete artist. Both his SLEEPING BEAUTY and GISELLE this season showed that he is well on his way.

[Elizabeth]

I just their Giselle last night, Herman's "offical" debut. It was the most incredible dance performance I have ever seen in 30+ years of balletgoing. I cried as well; I've never been as moved. The technical brilliance was astounding, virtually flawless, and the magic swept through the full house. Reyes was the best I've ever seen her and was a great dramatic actress as well. Isaac Stappas as Hilarion rocked; he is the finest character actor ABT has. I'm glad the leads had the surprise matinee debut; it can only have helped them to work out any possible staging or performance issues. It must have helped make their evening performance one for the ages. And I love the Cornejo's interpretation of Albrecht; I had not seen it performed without Albrecht being at least a little bit cad. The emotional effect of playing the character as blindsided by love was that I totally believed his grief and sympathized with his pain. My god, what a performance. If there's a bootleg tape of the evening out there, I would pay any price for it.

[Evelyn Agosto Kozub]

I have to agree, that was one of the most incredible performances I have ever seen. Reyes was flawless, brilliant, breathtaking and unforgettable!! Her performance was so believable that it mentally swept me into another world – I could not stop the tears. Wow – many bravos to Reyes!!!

[Philip]

It's great to read these comments and hear how moving everyone felt the performance was. There really was a special atmosphere in the house, thanks to Xiomara and Herman.

I'm happy to say that thanks to the generosity of one of the dancers I will get to see GISELLE again on Saturday evening - the final performance of ABT's current Met season.