Eternally dissatis ed characters, heroes pursuing chimeras, love stronger than death, plethora of fantastic creatures, contrast between dream and reality, scene of madness: all themes that make Giselle the undisputed masterpiece of romantic ballet.

As director of the Ballet du Capitole, Kader Belarbi wanted to give his company with a production of Giselle, which would state what has been transmitted to him by the French school tradition: «I created this version of Giselle respecting the letter and spirit, but with my own words, my own language.

In the rst act, I have transformed the farmers into wine growers and made the vein of popular dances more rooted and rural. In opposition, the lords of the hunting with hounds are more dancing. In the second act, I have given special care to the Wilis, vaporous «Filles de l’air» to quote Gautier, in order to emphasize the duality between earthly and immaterial world.

I like the idea of a musical companion and for Giselle, I have called Philippe Béran, Swiss conductor, to return to the sources of what Adolphe Adam composed. Together we have resituated the original score and re-arranged it when it was necessary, in correspondence with my new vision. »