Giselle

World Premiere of Giselle Paris Opéra, June 28, 1841
First performed by BalletMet Columbus, September 30, 1993
First performance of this version, February 15, 2001

The Romantic Ballet

The "Romantic Movement" dominated the arts of Europe during the first half of the 19th century. Painting, music and literature were swept up in the Romantic ideals: questioning the academic rules of the past; stressing individual expression and experimentation; and moving away from classic themes to the inclusion of more local color, supernatural beings and melodrama.
Ballet was a latecomer to the Romantic style. Before that flashy virtuoso male dancing ruled the late eighteenth century ballet, with the increasing number of turns and athleticism of the male dancer ushering in the early nineteenth century. The ballets were usually transcriptions of existing stories (usually Greek or Roman myths), or dealt with pastoral scenes of shepherds and shepherdesses. Staging was elaborate and full of conventions, and the dressed wigs, full-skirted coats, heavy dresses, and high-heeled shoes did not make for easy dancing. This would all change on July 23, 1827 when Marie Taglioni danced for the first time at the Paris Opéra. One of the first to recognize the importance of Taglioni, Le Figaro wrote "Her debut will open a new epoch. It is Romanticism applied to dance…"
Taglioni's movements were considered lovelier than any before her. She could jump with a soaring lightness, she seemed to float on air, and she had perfected the art of dancing on the ends of her toes. Taglioni was not the first to dance 'en pointe'. Mme. Amalia Brugnoli had since 1822, but with an eye to astounding the audiences with her tours de force such as how long she could stay on point. Taglioni combined this technical strength with a poetic understanding and expressive language. She was the most influential dancer of her day, heralding in not only the Romantic era in dance but also other stylistic changes. It was she who first wore the long lightweight skirt that would become known as a Romantic tutu, and she established the hairstyle of the center part with the rest kept tight and close to the head.
Cyril Beaumont described the femme fatale of the Romantic era as "That elusive, fascinating, mocking vision, half woman, half goddess, which haunted the imaginations of so many poets, painters, writers, and musicians of the last century, and becoming their muse, inspired some to achieve masterpieces." Contemporary critics certainly believed ballerina Marie Taglioni embodied those and other desirable qualities.

Information from http://www.balletmet.org/Notes/Giselle.html