Giselle at Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts

Giselle opens in a German village, where the peasant girl Giselle meets with her sweetheart, Albrecht. She believes that he is another peasant, but Albrecht is secretly a nobleman taking a brief escape from his responsibilities. Despite this subterfuge, Albrecht is madly in love with Giselle.

Giselle loves nothing more than to dance, but her mother cautions her that her heart is too weak. When a jealous peasant boy, Hilarion, reveals that Albrecht is a nobleman and is betrothed to someone else, Giselle goes mad. Her heart fails her, and she dies tragically.

In Act II, her heartbreak extends into the afterlife: a sisterhood of vindictive spirits, called wilis, awakens Giselle from her grave. Because the wilis all died of broken hearts, they now seek revenge by capturing men and forcing them to dance to their deaths. When Albrecht comes to lay flowers at Giselle's grave, she must decide whether to punish the man who broke her heart or protect him from the wilis' wrath.

Contrasting the joy of rustic peasant dances with the malevolence of the wilis’ revenge, this haunting ballet is a perfect companion to your Halloween season. Experience the joys of first love and the tragedy of its loss in Giselle this October!