Oxford Journal Newspaper

The Russian State Ballet Of Siberia has featured at the Oxford New Theatre in previous years to warm reception and this performance of Giselle was no exception.

The stage at the New Theatre is quite small, however the simple but imaginative set helped usher the audience into Giselle's rustic world.  The classic story takes place on a single day of the grape harvest. Act one sees peasant girl Giselle fall in love with Count Albrecht, a nobleman posing as a peasant. When Albrecht's duplicity is exposed by the gamekeeper Hilarion, it is more than Giselle's fragile health can bear and she tragically dies.

The second act opens in moonlit woodland near Giselle's grave. Here we first find Hilarion, grieving for the girl he loved. However he encounters the Wilis, vengeful evil female spirits who force men to dance themselves to death. When Albrecht enters the scene, Giselle appears before him and forgives him. She protects her lover from the Wilis and is able to rest in peace. 

Anna Aulle as Giselle was as graceful as she was beautiful.  Her sleek movement in perfect time with the music made you forget there was even an orchestra present. Dmitry Sobolevsky was superb as Albrecht. He commanded the stage with impressive Grand jetés.  Sobolevsky also managed the difficult task of keeping his non-dance steps in time with the notes from the orchestra.

Hilarion, played by Ivan Karnaukhov, was striking to look at and played his role as love rival very convincingly. The only false note struck by the ensemble was when Hilarion appears with the sword exposing Albrecht, which made a limp plastic noise as it struck the stage detracting from the powerful emotions of the scene. A clang of metal would soon fix this.

The Corps de ballet helped bring the story to life, however their costumes for the second act were not haunting enough.  The Wilis are evil spirits and this was not portrayed enough through the scene or their costumes.  For me, they needed to be both ethereal and a little menacing.

Despite this their movements were well choreographed and mostly in time.  Such a large number of ballerinas with Albrecht floating between them was a delight to watch.  The long applause at the end reflected the performance and with such classics as Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker and Swan Lake in their repertoire I hope to be seeing The Russian State Ballet Of Siberia again soon.