SOUTH African audiences are truly spoilt in being able to see Konstantin Tachkin's St Petersburg Ballet Theatre on our local stages for the second year running.


The poise and polish of the company is superb, as was evident during the opening performance of Giselle at the State Theatre in Pretoria on Wednesday night.


This staging of a tale steeped in melodrama and surreal fantasy is a gem.


Dancing the role of Giselle was Prima Ballerina Irina Kolesnikova. She literally oozes grace, a vision of splendour on the stage whose
expressiveness imbues her character with potency and life.


The chemistry between her and Dmitry Akulinin, who danced the role of Count Albrecht, is palpable, the two using mime, interpretation and expression to great effect.


In Act I, the lovely peasant girl Giselle is wooed by Count Albrecht, who has disguised himself as a peasant. The village gamekeeper Hilarion (Dymchik Saykeev), is also passionately in love with Giselle.


When Albrecht's betrothed arrives Hilarion alerts Giselle of her sweetheart\'s duplicity, and the divine young maiden is driven to madness before she dies of a broken heart.


Bright and vibrant to start with, the first act went off flawlessly.


One of the highlights was the Peasant Pas De Deux by Sabina Yapparova and Andrey Yakhnuk, who also display an obvious fusion of mind and body.
But it was Yakhnuk, especially, who thrilled with his solos. Light and lithe, he is spectacular.


Act II sees the entry of a darker otherworldliness as we are introduced to the Wilis, spirits of betrothed girls who were fond of dancing and died when betrayed.


Both Hilarion and Albrecht are swept into the Will's dancing spell when they visit ft-Giselle's grave to repent.
There is no escape for Hilarion, but Albrecht is saved by the spirit Giselle, whose deep love is paramount in protecting him until the safety of dawn.
It is a tragic story that speaks of the power of a love so strong it reaches out beyond the grave. No happy ending as such, but a resolution and a preservation of their feelings.


The rapport between Kolesnikova and Akulinin in this second act is lovely, exhibited both in fluid lightness of motion and the manner in which their expressions paint emotion.


Yulia Petrova dancing as Myrtha, Queen of the Wilis, was also divine.


In addition, words fail in describing the synergy and synchrony of the corps de ballet.


The sylph-like dancers epitomise that perfection of combined motion that sees a group of individual dancers moving as a single entity.
Another huge positive is the live orchestra accompaniment.
The Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra, under the direction of Vadim Nikitin, impressed, rendering Adolphe Adams's music in divine, lyrical magnificence. The Russians are spectacular in this romantic ballet, and seeing them perform live is an infinitely special experience.