There are not many significant and famous ballets from the classical and romantic eras that our company does not have in its repertoire. With the pinnacle work of ballet romanticism Giselle, we are including in our performance program, without exaggeration, one of the fundamental cornerstones of ballet literature’s DNA. In 1841, the premiere of the new ballet Giselle took place in Paris and was such an enormous success that within one decade it appeared on all the major stages of the ballet world of that time. The subject matter was provided by German poet Heinrich Heine in his collection De l’Allemagne. The story about girls who died of betrayed love before their wedding and now cannot find peace in their graves was taken up by Théophile Gautier, the great theorist of romantic theater, and librettist Jules Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges. The touching, graceful and melodic music, filled with French charm, was created by A. CH. Adam. The first performer of the fragile Giselle was one of romanticism’s greatest dancers, Carlotta Grisi, for whom this ballet was created by choreographers Jean Coralli and Jules Perrot. In Czech lands, Giselle gained the audience’s favor only gradually. It reached the Brno stage only in the late 1960s, when it was first presented here by choreographer Miroslav Kůra (1968). In the memory of audiences surely remains the centennial production by Jiří Blažek from 1983 with the unforgettable ethereal ballerina Soňa Zejdová and later Jana Kosíková in the title role.

Adam’s Giselle is a title performed around the world. It has been interpreted by perhaps all ballet stars, prima ballerinas, ballerinas and regional dancers alike. It has become a fulfilled dream or a test of talent, technical brilliance and acting mastery.

Premiere: May 8, 2026 at the Mahen Theatre

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