'Giselle' - A Documentary

[@veracruz7954]

What a privilege to watch Spessivtzeva ! I feel BLESSED !!!... 🥰🥰🥰🥰

[@JohnRaymondHall]

and see her after her bout in mental institutions was over

[@marygoodson4920]

Me too! She was incredible. I wish there was footage of her in the 2nd act.❤❤❤❤❤

[@susannevollmer2347]

Olga Spessivtseva is such a nice old lady. And this dark voice in this small person! She and Sir Dolin this kind gentleman; I love this couple very much! Thank you John, for this wonderful. importent docu.

[@JohnRaymondHall]

yes, he is so gentle and empathetic with her - and she so fragile and sweet

[@voyaristika5673]

How fortunate to have Olga on film! Thank you so much for posting this timeless gem.

[@voraciousreader3341]

OMG, the unison dance sequences in the amateur film of Spessivtzeva and Dolin are perfect! Her legs are absolutely gorgeous, seriously, and when they do the exaggeratedly long steps together....exquisite!!! I wish there was more film footage of these two dancing, of course, but what I _REALLY_ wish is that I could have seen them in their prime! I’d probably be dead by now, but I think, hope, and believe it would be worth it, lol!!

[@mariaellis2882]

I used to watch this video on VHS over and over. I am so glad I found it on KZbin. Thank you so much for this beautiful documentary.

[@JohnRaymondHall]

i did too Maria! over and over. i bought the VHS tape and had it converted to an M4 file - makes it so accessible.

[@miata06gal]

Oh, how I wish there was "closed captions." Having trouble understanding every word. Such a beautiful ballet. Saw it years ago in Atlanta. Also, was lucky enough to see Galina Ulanova perform at the OLD Met (the year before it was demolished) when I was 16. Even then I knew it was very, very special.

[@JohnRaymondHall]

i wish there were more 'closed captions' too. you are very lucky to have seen Galina Ulanova - old theatre goers at Covent Garden used to tell of her 1956 appearance there

[@OLIVCHEN77]

Danke, Danke, Danke,Gott segne Sie....wie grossartig, dass Sie sich diese Mühe gemacht haben

[@JohnRaymondHall]

mein absolutes Vergnügen!

[@rlatimer10]

Funny that these performances are so much better than many current versions which seem to rely only on hyper extensions and acrobatic tricks and fail to consider the acting part of this ballet.

[@marygoodson4920]

Yes! Agree 1000%.

[@MishaGelsey]

Oh my, I had this on VHS as a little girl too! This is too much. I cannot thank you enough for this. I am overcome with emotion, seeing this again. I used to do the mad scene in my living room, tripping over the cat... My goodness, thank you again for posting this.

[@JohnRaymondHall]

my absolute pleasue - i bought this as a VHS tape and had it converted to an MP4 video file - quite a process!!

[@raz1926]

Such a beautiful insight by so many gifted ballerinas. I learned so much, and it has made me more excited as I'm going to see Giselle at the Royal Opera House tonight! ❤

[@JohnRaymondHall]

lucky you - what cast did you see?

[@milkicahorvat1433]

It is very good. Just gorges, beatiful.

[@celiabonadies5667]

I will watch this again. What a treasure!

[@JohnRaymondHall]

isn't it :)

[@macnellietwo]

I remember this so well. Could not hit replay in those days! Love this. Thank you!

[@kathymyers7279]

what a wonderful man. He's given so much to the ballet community. s mentor and a real friend.

[@kathymyers7279]

gosh, these ballerinas are such humble and honoring individuals.

[@kathymyers7279]

they only care about giving.

[@me67226]

Why wóuldnt they be?

[@me67226]

?

[@laurataylor2957]

OMG! Thank you for your time and effort to bring this to us! What a wonderful endeavor! Thank you so so much!!!!!

[@JohnRaymondHall]

my absolute pleasure Laura :) a wonderful documentary

[@veracruz7954]

An amazing video, thanks a million ! Truth, like art, is in the eye of the beholder.... in my eye, Carla Fracci was (😢) the best Giselle, EVER !!!!..... 💕💕💕💕💕💕

[@JohnRaymondHall]

pleasure, i had this as a VHS tape and decided it should be widely available so i digitalized it. i agree about Fracci being the best Giselle - i saw her in the ballet at La Scala and was totally captivated! Natalia Osipova today is amazing in the role, don't you think?

[@adriennebeecker5000]

I saw Galina Ulinova once in my lifetime and those few minutes are engraved In my mind forever. She danced Moussorgsky,s “ The Dying Swan” from “The Carnival of the Animals”.

[@JohnRaymondHall]

lucky you seeing Ulanova!

[@OLIVCHEN77]

Thank you so much for this upload...thabk you to see and hear all this magnificent Artists speak about their interpretation...so glorious...thank you...I am moved to tears

[@JohnRaymondHall]

it's a wonderful compilation of first hand accounts!

[@tatum.shoptaugh]

The special feeling that this ballet evokes is timeless! Generation to generation! I could not express the emotions better myself! My favorite ballet and role forever; Giselle changes and touches me every single time! An honor to and pleasure to dance💙

[@JohnRaymondHall]

i feel very much the same as you

[@lindaharrison3240]

Thanks for uploading this gem to KZbin. I remember taping this onto a videotape back when it first aired on Bravo, back when cable was in its infancy. It really is a wonderful and important contribution to ballet history. ❤️🙏🏽

[@JohnRaymondHall]

hi Linda. i did the same. and lost the video i moving to live in London and then in Paris. i bought a VHS tape of this documentary and had it converted into a mp4 video file - love having it out there and accessible :)

[@Dykonoclast]

Thanks so much for putting this up here!!! A bunch of years ago I found out this film existed but that it was only available in academic libraries I didn't have access to. So I conscripted a housemate to get me into her college's special collections, book a viewing room, and request this film so I could see it. Watching it on youtube is much easier ^_^

[@JohnRaymondHall]

my pleasure. yes, so many wonderful documentaries are inaccessible - i bought this as a VHS tape and had it converted to an MP4 video file - quite a process!!

[@flightydancer]

12 years ago, I wrote a full length play about Miss Spessivtzeva for my thesis. She plays a big role in my life. I remember researching her life, trying some of her ballet exercises (which are really hard) and watched this film in VHS many times. I love her very much.

[@rlatimer10]

Such a marvelous documentary, thank you for sharing.

[@JohnRaymondHall]

pleasure Rita

[@asclepius3117]

A priceless documentary.

[@mrlopez-pz7pu]

12:24, 14:39, 45:28 - the famous act one variation of Giselle was indeed first performed outside of Russia by Spessivtzeva. Dolin wasn't sure of its origins here, but now we know: it is not by Minkus but by Riccardo Drigo, and was first performed in 1887 by the Italian ballerina Elena Cornalba in Petipa's revival of Saint-Léon's ballet Fiametta. Cornalba then used the variation again for her debut in Giselle in December, 1887, where it has remained ever since. The Sergeyev collection répétiteurs of the score for Giselle title the variation as "Variation Corn.", as does the Royal Ballet's original musical materials for Giselle from their first production. Thanks to Spessivtzeva, the solo has spread around the world.....even so, only the Mariinsky performs Drigo's music in its original orchestration. I have no doubt that Tchaikovsky based Aurora’s act 1 variation on this variation.

[@JohnRaymondHall]

thanks for that about the the famous act one variation - appreciated

[@alecsia96]

Enchanting. I think i have never seen Markova in such quality video and for more than a few snippets... Thank you so much.

[@JohnRaymondHall]

pleasure! it's a remarkable doco in that so many great Ballets Russes dancers appear and talk to camera.

[@louisesmedley-hampson1828]

Alex, I am so grateful for this documentary about my favourite ballet. I had never seen this docu before and found it engaging and absorbing. It was lovely to see the clips of great ballerinas dancing the role and hear Anton Dolin's memories. Thank you so much.

[@JohnRaymondHall]

Louise, it is my favourite documentary about the ballet - seeing Karsavina and Spessivtseva talk about aspects of the ballet is totally fascinating. i was very happy to have had it converted from a VHS tape which i bought to a video file to be able to share. :)

[@me67226]

I love the Willis,❤️🌹🌻

[@ivmile]

It is great pleasure to see documentary like this one. So much to see from first hand and what is most important so much to LEARN from people who has wright and oblige to say something...That is that !

[@ivmile]

I remember that one American Ballet Magazine many years ago had article that in Russia original Adam music for Giselle was recomposed by Minkus. About 35% in total is by Minkus and that was illustrated with many piano scores. Probably Spessivtzeva solo variation is from that Minkus bag. A. Markova said when Sergejev arrived to the west he claimed that every ballerina has personal choise to finish that solo. There is two possibilities. A. Markova and C. Fraci danced "Svessivtzeva diagonal". Today this diagonal is not possible to see on stage.

[@neethadesilva5747]

Magical

[@macnellietwo]

Me too! I loved it! Thank you!

[@carolelindagonzalez1087]

Thank you for posting. This was wonderful. I'd never seen it.

[@JohnRaymondHall]

pleasure - it was quite a journey getting it here - i bought an old VHS tape and, using an equally old VHS player and software had the tape converted to digital form. and then the upload here. but it was worth it!

[@Apulia2001]

Oh, My! All that work is really appreciated!

[@JohnRaymondHall]

thanks! but curiously i enjoyed it as i felt i could now access footage on VHS tapes - i developed some (small!) skills at doing it. finding the initial VHS tape was the hardest thing!

[@Apulia2001]

I linked your video to a friend. She said she hadn't seen it in years and was happy to see it again. She had been looking for it for a long time and couldn't find it either.

[@carolelindagonzalez1087]

I know I've said this already, but this is an amazing piece of history, especially the interview with olga spessivtseva and that glimpse of Alicia Alonso. I hope it has been preserved by the appropriate historical organizations.

[@sedekiman]

A shame Fonteyn's Giselle was not featured. The first ballet she did with Nureyev, and which caused such a sensation in the ballet world.

[@ytdanielle]

thank you

[@JohnRaymondHall]

pleasure Dan :)

[@marygoodson4920]

I've seen 3 Giselle's in my life: Bruhn and Fracci, Makarova and I think Paolo Bortoluzzi. And Baryshnikov and Kirkland. 😊❤

[@JohnRaymondHall]

i've been lucky to have seen some wonderful Giselles: Maximova (in Paris on a Bolshoi tour), Makarova, and Fracci (in Milan with Nureyev)

[@margaretlouisehodges8945]

I saw this documentary many years ago - did not even have a recorder in those days as I lived in the bush. So happy to see this. I should be cooking instead of watching this!

[@JohnRaymondHall]

LOL - sorry yo have disrupted your household routine! :) but this is food for the mind! enjoy it - glad to have put it out there.

[@kathymyers7279]

that was a blessing. thankyou!

[@JohnRaymondHall]

hi Kathy - i can't see your comment 'i hate that' - sorry, as i like to respond to all comments :)

[@JohnRaymondHall]

my pleasure :)

[@kathymyers7279]

@@JohnRaymondHall ?

[@JohnRaymondHall]

@@kathymyers7279 hi Kathy - i think i've gotten my wires crossed! sorry

[@Mytube777]

What a treat! Thank you!

[@JohnRaymondHall]

pleasure! :) a great doco with marvelous archival footage!

[@daffo595]

Thank you for sharing! I love it!

[@JohnRaymondHall]

pleasure - it was no easy task as i had to convert a VHS tape to an mp4 video format - i but it was worth it :)

[@daffo595]

we're all the better for it being uploaded here

[@JohnRaymondHall]

i think you're right - so amazing to see Karsavina and Spessivtzeva interviewed!

[@felixdevilliers1]

Am I really the first person to comment? What a wonderful video, one of your gifts long before my birthday and Christmas. The snippets I hav seen of Markova and others are extended here. I now have a much better idea of how Markova danced. All the ballerinas are sublime but I regret not having seen Pavlova in Giselle; she might have beaten them all with her magic. I saw Carla Fracci do the secind act in Verona. One of my best ever ballet experiences; her partner Iancu (?) was also exceptional.

[@felixdevilliers1]

I'll allow myself a bit of chat. In all the Giselles I have seen Albrecht is dressed as a gentleman, not a peasant albeit not an aristocrat, that we know of. It takes Hilarion to reveal this. This makes more sense of the story to me: a philanderer who comes to realise he really loves Giselle. According to the video the mother's moment of fear comes due to her concern about Giselle's health. Not true at all for me. During that moment the music changes completely and clearly evokes the realm of the Wilis. The mother is surely afraid of what might happen to her daughter if abandonded by an upper class gent, someone beyond her class.. Maybe the peasants know about the reign of the Wilis

[@felixdevilliers1]

I don't like it at all when the ballet ends with the presto finale, never used by the Royal. He should stand alone on the stage with soft music.. To me, after being through the mythical realm he is reborn and becomes a new human being, perhaps the first. A well-known ballet critic wrote that of course Albbrecht comes to his senses and goes back like a good boy to the world to which he belongs. I took the friend of a friend who was a Yuppie with his girl frined to see Giselle with Seymour. During the interval the girl said the ballet was lovely but what was Albrecht doing with a girl like that'

[@felixdevilliers1]

One thing I love about this ballet is that the betrayer does not come to a sticky end but is forgiven by the woman he has betrayed. Not the usual settling of moral scores as often happens in Cranko ballets.

[@JohnRaymondHall]

i just made a long comment and it has disappeared - i am livid!

[@JohnRaymondHall]

this is what i recall of my long comment that just got deleted: yes, you are the first, unless the time zone is playing into this. i saw Fracci and Nureyev dance the ballet at La Scala - she dropped real tears at the end of Act 1 - very moving - she created the Romantic ballerina without it being a dusty museum piece Albrecht comes in, in the RB version, as a prince and gives his courtly cape and his sword to his aide - though it’s more than a bit odd that the rest of his clothing could be mistaken by Giselle as peasant’s gear - a theatrical device i suspect. i like your noticing that the music tells of the Willis (was not this the first use of the leitmotif?) and that this suggest the real motivation of Giselle’s mother’s fear - i nice insight! you mention the critic who says “Albrecht comes to his senses and goes back like a good boy to the world to which he belongs” - this seems to misread the libretto, however fanciful one might think that libretto to be. interesting that your yuppie friend saw it that way too. it would be like reading the Crucifixion as an exercise in attention seeking! i saw Lyn and Nureyev in the ballet - she was wonderful dramatically but less than her best dance-wise - it was early to mid 70s

[@clairelanglands2730]

Some day I wish to dance Giselle ❤️

[@brackthomasfischer6139]

OMG thank you for posting this!!! I watched it a few years ago, Giselle is what inspired me to start ballet!! I want to be the first male to dance Giselle!! Do you have the rest of Alicia Alonso's Mad Scene?!

[@JohnRaymondHall]

sadly not - and i'm surprised it's not on YT - hopefully someone will post it.

[@voraciousreader3341]

Spessivtzeva most likely had bipolar disorder, which would account for her relentless-and totally unrealistic-pursuit of perfection. Bipolar disorder (or manic depressive disorder) seems to be the special reserve of artists of every type. The book, “Touched With Fire-Manic Depressive Illness and the Artistic Temperament,” by Kay Redfield Jameson, brilliantly explains the links between great artists and psychological illness, citing the names of artists and their family members who suffered from the disorder, and how it affected their work. She also raised the provocative question regarding medication and how it seems to blunt artistic ‘madness,’ the unrelenting need to create, but serve to alleviate the terrible troughs of depression. I really feel for Spessivtzeva, and wonder if she felt it was all worth it, or even if she was able to remember.

[@simonedevlin7710]

Historically it is true that ballerinas always wanted to dance in performances of Giselle.It would be nice to see Mikhail Baryshnikov's original choreographed works. Perhaps he had the chance to create a more updated conceptual version. Innovation, out of the blue,something brand new!

[@JohnRaymondHall]

yes, it's interesting to see new takes on the classics

[@susannevollmer2347]

@@JohnRaymondHall Oh please fingers off "Giselle". Writing this at 5.32 in the early morning.

[@kerryngledhill5240]

This is a wonderful documentary - I have tried to watch it several times over the last couple of months but cannot get any sound. I have sound on my computer - have tested it every time - any clues John Hall - would love to be able to listen to Anton Dolin's narration again - thank you for uploading - it is a gem :)

[@JohnRaymondHall]

that's very strange - the audio is fine here, have you tried another browser, Firefox or Google Chrome? i'll upload it to Vimeo and put the URL here. can you tell how that goes?

[@kerryngledhill5240]

I use Google Chrome John Hall - but yes understand Vimeo as well. I have just checked my sound again as I have just watched the 4 episodes of Ballerina done by Natalia Makarova in the 90s, very recently uploaded to my delight as I have been watching out for it for a long time and it has sound but when I came back to dear Anton Dolin, I still have no sound.. So would appreciate an upload to Vimeo - thank you - I just love your channel John Hall - was watching Le Chant de Rossignol with the inimitable Dame Alicia Markova today - she certainly was Prima Ballerina Assoluta = just listening to her say that Stravinsky conducted for her and her costume was designed by Matisse, sends one's head spinning a bit don't you think? Thanks again :)

[@JohnRaymondHall]

hi Kerry. i've uploaded 'A Portrait of Giselle' to Vimeo for you - vimeo.com/250447041 - please tell me if you have any problems with the sound and i'll see what else i can do. glad you enjoying what i'm uploading! :) cheers

[@kerryngledhill5240]

Oh thank you John Hall (Nick) that is just so wonderfully kind of you. I shall look at the link very soon and keep fingers crossed that I have sound. Have tried the other link you put up several times more, just to make sure it wasn't my end but alas, still no sound is possible and yet I KZbin all night long sometimes so know I have sound on my PC. Will let you know how I go kind man :) :)

[@JohnRaymondHall]

sorry it took so long - my life was swallowed up in Xmas, as i guess is everyone else's. look forward to hearing if you can hear the sound! fingers crossed :)

[@me67226]

Carla Fracci is a great Geselle

[@ewelinalaskowski4968]

Oh, yes !

[@me67226]

Why do people always leave out Gelsey Kirkland?🌷🏵️🌼🌸

[@JohnRaymondHall]

i don't know why - she was thirty and at her prime when this doco was put together

[@deniseharkins7792]

This movie features the great Giselle’s of all time… there are many other great interpreters .

[@patriciafoster3347]

I love FERRI the best. Her feet! I don’t see that anywhere else.

[@JohnRaymondHall]

yes!

[@susannevollmer2347]

My darlings: Evdokimova and Hart!

[@petitsaule622]

French subtitles please ? Thanks a lot.

[@JohnRaymondHall]

sadly I can find not French sub-titles

[@kathymyers7279]

I wonder what kind of Giselle Pat McBride turned out to be?

[@granadascarf4375]

I was wondering the same thing and if there were any videos of the performance.

[@franxiscosanchez7668]

Todas mas que brillantes , grandes Giselles indiscutibles , sin querer crear discordias y acogiéndome a la búsqueda , perfección , carisma , expresión , ejecución , u digamos Ángel en la escena La Gran Giselle fue ALICIA ALONSO una Gisrlle orgánica sin afectaciones en todo momento la campesina enferma , delicada , enamorada así se a traducido en una gran tradición para las audaces bailarinas CUBANAS de por generaciones , son las herederas de tan maravilloso ballet del Romanticismo hasta nuestros DIAS . TODAS GENIALES EXPRESIVAS BELLAS DIESTRAS FAMOSAS GLAMUROSAS JOYAS REINAS DIGNAS DUEÑAS DE LA GLORIA .................................. ( Gracias ) ..............................

[@me67226]

Much more graceful then Maya pllentskiya. Spelling off on last name