Hello! from Hannam: One to the Ballet, One to Taipei

RCP left for Taipei this morning and I went to the ballet. I'll be sure to give a full pictorial report of Taiwan's capital city upon his return but I have to say, the ballet was absolutely fantastic.....even better than going to another country.

This year marks the 50th Anniversary of the Korean National Ballet and they began this anniversary season with "Giselle" probably the second most-loved ballet to "Swan Lake". I haven't been to a ballet since high school when I saw the world premier of "Dracula", so needless to say I have been dying to see a ballet of any sort but truth be told, I was more curious as to how well the Koreans would pas de deux, pirouette and arabesque. The company performs at the Seoul Arts Center, where we were just two weeks ago taking in some Bach, but in a different theater called the Opera House. Very red, lots of gold and all-in-all just very 'operatic', the Opera House was a gorgeous venue, much different from the modern, solid wood, perfect-for-sound-resonation interior of the Music Hall.

I was able to coax Heather and Agata into going with me since both of their husbands were away on business trips, so we started the evening with a nice pre-performance dinner at Saigon Grill here in Hannam before making the traffic-ridden trip by cab to the arts center. Our tickets were waiting at 'Will Call' and I must note that our seats were a mere $10.00 a piece. $10.00 will barely get you anywhere in a cab in New York, much less seats at Lincoln Center. Despite the seats being in the 2nd balcony, they were PERFECTLY positioned, perched at a nice steep angle so that every formation and step of choreography could be appreciated.

The ballet is the story of a peasant girl named Giselle. Act 1 is set in a village and to noble Count Albrecht loves Giselle though she knows him only as a villager named Loys. Giselle's mother, Berthe, hopes that her daughter will marry Hilarion, a forester who is devoted to Giselle, and warns her against Loys. But Giselle disregards Hilarion, and joins with her beloved in the celebrations that mark the end of the grape harvest. When Albrecht's squire secretly warns his master of the approach of a hunting party, Hilarion observes them and manages to break into Loys's cottage, seeking to learn the secret of Loys's identity. The hunting party arrives, led by the Duke of Courland and his daughter Bathilde, Albrecht's future bride, who are staying at Albrecht's castle. They seek rest in Berthe's cottage and Bathilde, charmed by Giselle, gives her a necklace. The Duke orders a hunting horn to be left so that his courtiers may be summoned in due course, and this provides Hilarion with proof of Loys's identity as he compares the crests on the horn and on a sword he has found in Loys's cottage. Just as Giselle is crowned Queen of the Vintage, Hilarion reveals the truth about Loys. When Bathilde returns and claims Albrecht as her fiancé, the shock is too much for Giselle and she loses her reason. In her madness she re-lives her love for Loys and, seizing his sword, she kills herself.

Act II is set at Giselle's grave in the forest. As midnight sounds, Hilarion keeps vigil by Giselle's grave, which lies in unhallowed ground by a forest lake. This is the time when the Wilis materialize - ghosts of young girls who have been jilted and have died before their wedding day; now they avenge themselves by dancing to death any man whom they happen upon during the hours of darkness. Myrtha, their Queen, summons her Wilis; and next Giselle is called from her grave to be initiated into their rites. When Albrecht enters, bringing flowers for Giselle's tomb, Giselle appears to him. The Wilis pursue Hilarion, whom they drive to his death, and next fall vengefully upon Count Albrecht. Myrtha condemns him to dance until he dies, and though Giselle urges him to the safety of the cross on her grave, Myrtha commands Giselle to dance and lure Albrecht from the cross. Giselle tries to sustain him, but as the night wears on his dancing becomes more and more exhausted. Just as his death seems imminent, dawn breaks. Daylight destroys the Wilis' power and the ghostly dancers fade away; Giselle, whose love has transcended death, returns to her grave, her spirit free from the power of the Wilis, leaving Albrecht sorrowing alone.

Such a tragic story, but the Koreans danced it as beautifully and perfectly as anything I've ever seen. Bravo.

The next ballet they will perform in April is "Spartacus". I wonder if I can get RCP to that one before he tries to flee the country again, clearly trying to avoid watching a stage full of men in tights.

(At the end of this post is a YouTube video of a Korean news clip about the Korean National Ballet and their anniversary season that I thought might be interesting to watch. Enjoy! Hope it's viewable).