Cape Town City Ballet Will Perform GISELLE as Part of its Summer Season at Artscape

Following the success of their sold-out season of The Nutcracker over the Christmas holidays, Cape Town City Ballet will present Giselle at the Artscape Theatre this March 2025. The exquisite ballet forms part of the company’s Summer Season programme that includes Dane Hurst’s Requiem and the pas de dix from Raymonda set to Glazunov's glorious score. This highly anticipated production promises to enchant audiences with exquisite choreography, hauntingly beautiful music and poignant tale of love, betrayal, and redemption.

With choreography and staging by Artistic Manager Tracy Li, a former CTCB ballerina herself, Giselle is set to Adolphe Adam’s evocative score that will be played by the UC T Symphony Orchestra at five of the seven performances, under the baton of Brandon Phillips. The CTCB company will be led by principals Kirstel Paterson and Leusson Muniz in the lead roles as Giselle and Albrecht, alongside a star lineup. The full cast will be announced soon.

Giselle is a poignant story that explores the transformative power of love and forgiveness. The ballet opens in a vibrant village setting, where Giselle, a vibrant young peasant girl, dreams of love. Her romance with Albrecht, a nobleman disguised as a villager, is full of youthful promise but is soon shattered when his true identity is revealed. In the haunting second act, Giselle’s spirit rises to join the Wilis, spectral brides who were betrayed before their weddings, who seek vengeance on unfaithful men. However, Giselle’s compassion however transcends her heartbreak, protecting Albrecht from their wrath and ultimately delivering a message of redemption and hope. 

Said Tracy Li, “After the triumphant season of The Nutcracker our wonderful company is buoyant going into 2025 and starting off with this enduring classic is so exciting.”  

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