Erik Bruhn and Carla Fracci - A Segment of 'Giselle' Act 1 (ABT 1969)

[Bnesque]

Thank you for reminding me of this fabulous "girl meets boy moment" of one of the greatest actress/dancer. I cherish every detail of her doing things, like caring about her clothe or coyly moving away from Albrecht or everithing!

[nickwallacesmith]

hi Bnesque - she is THE giselle for me - of those i've seen. she became the character, within the romantic idiom stylistically. i loved maximova too - saw her in paris as a kid - like a connection with ulanova, her coach. fracci cried literally at one point during a la scala performance i saw (nureyev was albrecht) - i was using opera glasses - touching and not melodramatic - touching in the extreme.

[Bnesque]

@nickwallacesmith To tell you the truth, I have this strage feeling. At first I thought she is THE giselle, then the madness scene came out, I saw the moment the madness took over her and how her madness was deep and dark, I was brought out to the Greek tragedy world not merely the imagination of Theophile Gautier. And I thought she trancsended Giselle. Well I might be just obsessed but I can't help myself...

[nickwallacesmith]

hi Bnesque - curiously i saw carla fracci dancing in rome in 2003, in a modern work - not that the ballet was good but it was great to be able to see her for a last time on stage - i'd last seen her as a kid in 1973 - so a 20 year span! probably a bit obsessed myself too!

[Bnesque]

@nickwallacesmith Is that Medea?

[nickwallacesmith]

hi Bnesque - i think it was 'Girotondo Romano' at the Teatro Nazionale - we were travelling quickly and noticed the performance ad. snatched tickets at the last moment without getting a program. it was modern dress. cheers

[Bnesque]

@nickwallacesmith Thank you again for the great information!

[fivelorn]

Nick....you are the Alexandrian Library of Classical dance videos!!

[nickwallacesmith]

hi fivelorn - thanks! very kind of you, very. happily there are others loading some great stuff - you might like to check out crazy4newcastle's channel. hope to hear from you again, best, nick

[ploplisphilin]

I know what you mean, nick. I was seduced into the world of ballet by watching Fonteyn and Nureyev dance the white swan pas de deux on the Ed Sullivan show. I was never the same again. But, now with my perspective, I understand why Mr. B. never really cared to invite him to dance at NYCB, except for the little "Bourgeois Gentilhomme" ballet. Too much the "Prince" in his own mind! Bless you, Rudi, for making the male ballet dancer more than a porteur.

[nickwallacesmith]

hi ploplisphilin - they were a seductive pair for the young in that decade! and yes he muddled the prince and a sense of himself as a great dancer on stage so that character go submerged. and baryshnikov being more chameleon Mr B was happy to have him for his time. and for rudi, i loved how he creatively brought the male to the front in works such as his 'nutcracker' - tho de valois said she wasn't sure how much he'd lifted out of a russian production - perhaps not as much as she thought.

[mickimm100]

Thank you for the tip and thank you for your channel: it is always a pleasure to visit it as you put the audience in the mood with your prologue photos!

Dmitri Gudanov, excerpt available here in YouTube, is also a WONDERFUL Albrecht, evoking in himself the spirit of the 2nd act!

!

[nickwallacesmith]

hi mickimm100 - no problem - very pleased you like visiting! and that you like the phot lead ins to film - i think it helps focus on the footage. i try to extend some music over the images so there's not a dead silence at the beginning, though this seems ok at times. cheers!

[ploplisphilin]

Nureyev--awful! I just recently transferred my VHS tape of the Lynn Seymour to DVD and his acting was so hammy and unsympathetic and that ridiculous variation he created for himself in act one. Very big ego on display. Poor Lynn! I think she was the only one he could convince to film with him--and she is a bit old in the close-ups but still a lovely dancer. I have never cared for any "Nureyev" production. Disgusted by the billing on the VHS packaging: "Rudolf Nureyev in 'Giselle.'"

[nickwallacesmith]

hi ploplisphilin - i loved seeing Rudi and Margot as a kid but, yes, i too was always uncomfortable with his stage persona and inability to really be a character - and it was something the critics used to touch on from time to time. even ninette de valois was seduced by the big personality - when she talks of him 'taking his curtain call, grandly sweeping his arms around the auditorium'. i think it was part of the 60s pop/dance idol thing, so out of place today. good to hear from you. cheers

[mickimm100]

Yes, and also the unforced joy and innocence of Fracci's Giselle, particularly in this excerpt. With Bruhn, the danseur noble for me, this is one of the most moving Giselle performances I've seen, luckily available on dvd.

[nickwallacesmith]

hi mickimm100 - i agree with what you say about Fracci's innocence - it's what makes her mad scene so moving - i saw this wonderful ballerina in 'giselle' as a kid, at la scala in milan with nureyev. she managed to create a kind of Romantic era ballerina but one that's comprehensible to modern audiences. yes, great when such performances are available to all on DVD - it's been uploaded in 9 bits on you tube on xxxFreyjaxxx's channel.

[ploplisphilin]

Fracci was the first ballerina to help me understand Giselle, and you know what they say about "first loves." There may be more accomplished technical dancers in the role, but to me she was sublime as an actress and dancer. Bruhn, unfortunately, is a bit long-in-the-tooth for close-ups, but his dancing is exemplary. Look at those long muscles in this legs--not all bunched up Russian-style and the ballon!!! This is a lovely film of their performances, minus the gimmicky camera work in sections.

[nickwallacesmith]

hi ploplisphilin - Fracci was my first 'giselle' - as a kid at la scala in milan - with nureyev - early/mid 70s. a great introduction - in fact she's my favourite still. and makes you feel the dispair of 'betrayal' and all constructed within a delicate Romantic idiom that is not a dry dusty period re-construction. and yes bruhn's ballon is still something to wonder at.

yes, the camera work is very distracting at times, and gets in the way of seeing the dance.

[opensecret51]

@nickwallacesmith Fracci is also  my favourite 'Giselle' I loved her toghether with Vladimir Vasiiev...thanks dear Nick for posting .... she is most beautiful .....

[nickwallacesmith]

hi opensecret51 - i love her with vasiliev too - i have that 1972 lack and white footage broadcast on television - i know you'll know it - but i think i'll post it here, what do you think?

[opensecret51]

@nickwallacesmith Yes please post it ..♥

[nickwallacesmith]

hi opensecret51 - i'll post it tonight, cheers

[opensecret51]

@nickwallacesmith Thank dear Nick !

[nickwallacesmith]

hi opensecret51 - no problem - uploading now