Giselle

Nashville Ballet brings Giselle to the Polk Theater at TPAC from October 2 to 4, and it's a bit more than just a revival. This is Artistic Director and CEO Nick Mullikin's first full-length ballet, and he's putting his own stamp on the story. If you've seen Giselle before, it's worth knowing that this isn't a carbon copy of the classic version. Mullikin is presenting his own interpretation of the tale, which he describes as hauntingly beautiful.

There's a fair amount of new material here. The production features reinvigorated sets and costumes, new choreography, and live accompaniment by the Nashville Symphony, so the music is happening right there in the room rather than coming from a recording. It's also a homecoming of sorts for the ballet: this is the first time Giselle has returned to the company's main stage since 2009, so it's been seventeen years since the production last played this house.

As for the story, Giselle is one of the great staples of the romantic era. It follows a young peasant girl who falls in love with a nobleman in disguise, only to be betrayed. The first act is all sunlight and village dances, but the second act shifts into the supernatural, where Giselle returns as a wili—one of the ghosts of betrayed brides who dance men to their deaths. It's a story that moves from a bright, earthly romance into something much darker and more spectral, and that shift is where the ballet usually finds its power.

There are four performances over the weekend. It opens Friday, October 2, at 7:30 PM. Saturday, October 3, has two shows—a 2 PM matinee and a 7:30 PM evening performance. Sunday, October 4, is a 2 PM matinee. All four take place at the Polk Theater inside TPAC.