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Ballet
Giselle > Giselle is one of the most influential of all Romantic ballets, and one of the greatest and most popular works of the dance canon and of The Royal Ballet's repertory. The title role presents the transcendental power of a woman's love in the face of betrayal and is one of the most technically demanding and emotionally challenging roles in classical dance - not surprisingly, it is here a great showcase for the leading ballerinas of the Company. Peter Wright's sensitive staging in the atmospheric designs by John Macfarlane heightens the contrast as the story moves between the human and supernatural worlds. Featuring: Marianela Nuñez and Rupert Pennefather. Duration: 2 hours 17 minutes. .The Fugard Bioscope at 16h00 on Saturday 10 and Sunday 11 December @ 4pm. Book your seats here
Giselle is set in the Rhineland of the Middle Ages during the grape harvest. When the curtain rises on the first act, the cottage of Giselle and her mother Berthe are seen on one side, and opposite is seen the cottage of Duke Albrecht of Silesia, a nobleman who has disguised himself as a peasant named Loys, in order to sow a few wild oats before his marriage to Bathilde, the daughter of the Prince of Courland. Against the advice of his squire Wilfrid, Albrecht flirts with Giselle, who falls completely in love with him. Hilarion, a gamekeeper, is also in love with Giselle and warns the girl against trusting the stranger, but Giselle refuses to listen. Albrecht and Giselle dance a love duet, with Giselle picking the petals from a daisy to divine her lover's sincerity. The couple is interrupted by Giselle's mother, who, worried about her daughter's fragile health, ushers the girl into the cottage.
Horns are heard in the distance and Loys retreats from the scene. A hunting party enters and refreshments are served. Among the hunters are Bathilde and her father. Giselle returns to the scene, dances for the party, and receives a necklace from Bathilde. When the party departs, Loys reappears with the grape harvesters. A celebration begins. Giselle and the harvesters dance but the merriment is brought to a halt by Hilarion who, having investigated the Duke's cottage now brandishes the nobleman's horn and sword. The horn is sounded, and the hunting party returns. The truth about Loys (Albrecht) is learned and Giselle goes mad and dies. Although Giselle takes Albrecht's sword, her death is actually a result of her weak heart.
The second act is set in a moonlit glade near Giselle's grave. Hilarion is grieving Giselle's death. He is frightened from the glade by the Wilis, female spirits who, jilted before their wedding day, rise from their graves at night and seek revenge upon men by dancing them to death. Giselle is summoned from her grave and welcomed by the supernatural creatures who then quickly disappear. Albrecht enters searching for Giselle's grave, and she appears before him. He begs forgiveness. Giselle, her love undiminished, readily forgives him and the two dance. The scene ends with Albrecht in pursuit of Giselle as she disappears into the forest.
Hilarion enters pursued by the Wilis, who throw him to his death in a nearby lake. The Wilis then surround Albrecht and sentence him to death. He begs to be spared but Myrtha, Queen of the Wilis refuses. Giselle protects him from the Wilis when they force him to dance. Day breaks and the Wilis retreat to their graves, but Giselle's love has saved Albrecht. By not succumbing to feelings of vengeance and hatred that define the Wilis, Giselle is freed from any association with them, and returns to her grave to rest in peace.
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Siegfried synopsis
Act I
In his cave in the forest, the dwarf Mime forges a sword for his foster son Siegfried. He hates Siegfried but hopes that the boy will kill the dragon Fafner, who guards the Nibelungs' treasure, so that Mime can take the all-powerful ring from it. Siegfried arrives and smashes the new sword, raging at Mime's incompetence. Having realized that he can't be the dwarf's son, as there is no physical resemblance between them, he demands to know who his parents were. For the first time, Mime tells Siegfried how he found his mother, Sieglinde, in the woods, who died giving birth to him. When he shows Siegfried the fragments of his father's sword, Nothung, Siegfried orders Mime to repair it for him and rushes out.
As Mime sinks down in despair, a stranger enters. It is Wotan, lord of the gods, in human disguise as the Wanderer. He challenges the fearful Mime to a riddle competition, in which the loser forfeits his head. The Wanderer easily answers Mime's three questions about the Nibelungs, the giants, and the gods. Mime in turn knows the answers to the traveler's first two questions but gives up in terror when asked who will repair the sword Nothung. The Wanderer admonishes Mime for enquiring about faraway matters when he knows nothing about what closely concerns him. Then he departs, leaving the dwarf's head to "him who knows no fear" and who will re-forge the magic blade.
When Siegfried returns demanding his father's sword, Mime tells him that he can't repair it. He vainly tries to explain the concept of fear to the boy and, in order to teach him, proposes a visit to Fafner's cave. Siegfried agrees and enthusiastically begins to forge the sword himself. While he works, Mime prepares a sleeping potion to give to Siegfried once he has killed Fafner. Flashing the finished sword, Siegfried smashes the anvil in half and runs off into the forest.
Act II
The same night, Mime's brother Alberich is hiding by the entrance to Fafner's cave, obsessed with winning back the ring for himself. The Wanderer enters and tells the Nibelung to watch out for Mime. He then wakes Fafner and warns him that a young hero is on his way to kill him. Unimpressed, the dragon goes back to sleep.
As Dawn breaks, Mime and Siegfried arrive. Caught up in the peaceful beauty of the woods, Siegfried thinks about his parents. He tries to imitate the song of a bird on a reed pipe but fails and blows his horn instead. This awakens Fafner, and in the ensuing fight Siegfried kills the dragon. With his dying words, Fafner warns the boy of the destructive power of the treasure. When Siegfried accidentally touches a drop of Fafner's blood to his lips, he suddenly understands the singing of the bird, which directs him to the gold in the cave. Alberich and Mime appear quarreling but withdraw as Siegfried returns with the ring and the Tarnhelm. The bird warns Siegfried not to trust Mime, and when the dwarf offers him the potion, Siegfried kills him. The bird then tells Siegfried of a beautiful woman named Brünnhilde, asleep on a mountain surrounded by fire. He sets out to find her.
Act III
High on a mountain pass, the Wanderer summons Erda, goddess of the Earth, to learn the gods' fate. She evades his questions, and he resigns himself to the impending end of the gods' reign. His hope now rests with Brünnhilde and Siegfried. When Siegfried approaches, making fun of the god whom he takes for a simple old man, the Wanderer attempts to block his path. With a stroke of his sword, Siegfried shatters the Wanderer's spear--the same spear that smashed Nothung to pieces years before. Defeated, the Wanderer retreats.
Siegfried reaches the mountaintop where Brünnhilde sleeps. Never having seen a woman before, he thinks he has discovered a man. When he removes Brünnhilde's armor, he is overwhelmed by the sight of her beauty and finally realizes the meaning of fear. Mastering his emotions, he awakens her with a kiss. Hailing the daylight, Brünnhilde is overjoyed to learn that it is Siegfried who has brought her back to life. She tries to resist his declarations of passion, realizing that earthly love must end her immortal life, but finally gives in and joins Siegfried in praise of love.
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Opera
Siegfried > Robert Lepage's production of Wagner's Siegfried features Gary Lehman in his first Met performances of the title role. This third installment in the Met's new Ring cycle staged by Robert Lepage, follows the adventures of opera's ultimate hero, a valiant warrior who literally does not know the meaning of the word "fear."
Met Principal Conductor Fabio Luisi leads an all-star cast featuring Jay Hunter Morris in his first Met performances of the title role, one of the most challenging in the entire operatic canon.
Deborah Voigt returns as the warrior maiden, Brünnhilde, Bryn Terfel is the mysterious Wanderer, Patricia Bardon is the ancient earth goddess Erda, and Gerhard Siegel and Eric Owens are the nefarious brothers Mime and Alberich. The entire principal cast--with the exception of Morris and Siegel--all made role debuts in this production. The live transmission, hosted by soprano Renée Fleming, was directed by Gary Halvorson.
Siegfried's running time is approximately 6 hours, including two intermissions. Lepage introduces a new 3D technology as part of the projections that transform the set into startlingly dramatic images that readjust as the scenery moves and changes shapes. Developed by Réalisations.net, the innovative software, called Maginaire, programmed by Catalin Alexandru Duru, has never before been used in a theatrical presentation. Siegfried is the only opera in the new Ring to make use of this technology, which will be utilized to create an enhanced sense of theatrical realism for Siegfried's forest dwelling. "When you come to Siegfried," Lepage says, "you can fully appreciate the complexity and genius of the leitmotifs Wagner has used to create another world. That is what we must do onstage as well--create an organic world of dragons and bears and insects and other creatures, where Siegfried can prove himself the strong, fearless, virile hero."The production team also includes associate director Neilson Vignola, set designer Carl Fillion, costume designer François St-Aubin, lighting designer Etienne Boucher, and video image artist Pedro Pirés. Cinema Nouveau from November 25 for one week only. Book your seats here
Satyagraha
Philip Glass's landmark 1980 work, set to text from the ancient Sanskrit scripture the Bhagavad Gita, is a moving account of Mahatma Gandhi's formative experiences in South Africa, which transformed him into a great leader. For the opera's Met premiere, director Phelim McDermott and designer Julian Crouch (artistic directors of London's provocative Improbable theater company) use adventurous, improvisational puppetry, achieved by the Skills Ensemble, a brilliant team of aerialists, to illuminate this formative period in Gandhi's life and work. Tenor Richard Croft (pictured) brings his crystalline timbre and musical finesse to Glass's gently unfolding, chant-like music.
Approximate running time 3 hrs. 30 min.Cinema Nouveau from December 9 for one week only. Book your seats here
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