Precision and polish are at a premium as The Tokyo Ballet makes their very welcome Australian debut with cherished romantic classic Giselle. 

With The Australian Ballet jetting off to London to perform Jewels and a 60th Anniversary Celebration at Royal Opera House Covent Garden, the program space at home is filled by world renowned company The Tokyo Ballet. 

A full contingent of dancers along with lavish sets and costumes from The Tokyo Ballet grace the State Theatre stage. Adolphe Adam’s charming score is played by Orchestra Victoria, more than capably helmed by guest conductor Benjamin Pope. 

While The Australian Ballet has presented many a season of Giselle, this tour marks the Australian premiere of the Leonid Lavrovsky choreography, originally created for the Bolshoi Ballet in 1944. Lavrovsky’s choreography closely follows the traditional version from Jean Coralli, Jules Perrot, and Marius Petipa, with this season featuring the special inclusion in act one of the Peasant pas de huit by famed Russian dancer and choreographer Vladimir Vasiliev. This vibrant, larger scale sequence replaces the usual Peasant pas de deux. 

From the opening moments, acting and mine are beautifully and clearly performed. Storytelling is crystal clear and richly involving, and characters are sharply and engagingly drawn.

The curtain rises on a notably pristine version of the customary setting of Giselle’s home and a cottage with the grand palace looming amidst snow-capped peaks in the background. Nicola Benois’ set design sees the action framed by branches bearing fluffy leaves so autumnal that they must be set to fall at any moment. 

The autumnal tones continue in Benois’ pretty act one costume designs, with peasants in chocolate brown and olive, and royals in richer Mediterranean shades. Giselle wears white with a royal blue gradient at the waist; the girls in the pas de huit sport a similar style with pastel gelato shades at the waist. 

The autumnal colour theme pays off handsomely in the final stage picture of act one, in which lighting director Takashi Kitamura paints the forlorn figures in a wonderfully warm golden twilight. 

An endearingly tender, delicate Giselle, Akira Akiyama is a delight to watch, deftly conveying the much loved character while performing virtuosic dance. A clear highlight is Akiyama’s dazzling performance of the Giselle act one variation. Impeccably and characterfully danced, Akiyama’s mad scene is all the more heart rending for the sheer believability of the precious young woman’s tragedy. 

Yasuomi Akimoto makes a strong impression as Albrecht, ensuring that the covert Count precariously straddles the line between hero and cad. 

Corps dance sequences delight in act one, and the attractive placement of the corps about the stage during the divertissements is a further indication of the artistry at play here. Once those harvest festival divertissements start, there is nothing to do but sit back and enjoy the cavalcade of dance pleasure. 

Graveside in act two, overhead gnarled branches create a spooky silhouette as Wilis magically emerge from the mist. The grieving Hilarion is scared away by floating flames. In a distinctly crowd-pleasing moment, the veils of the Wilis are whipped off into space shortly aft their first en masse entrance. 

Akimi Denda begins the act with poise and purposeful presence as Myrtha, imperial Queen of the Wilis. 

The corps of 24 Wilis (plus two featured Wilis) showcase the precision of the company at its dazzling best. While this precision is grounded in the highly impressive synchronicity of dance and the enhanced by the perfection of the costumes, the exactitude is further boosted by the homogeneous cohort of dancers. 

Junya Okazaki compellingly captures the mania of tortured Hilarion as he is driven to dance himself to death.

As the ghostly Giselle tries to appear to the mourning Albrecht, Akiyama dances with aching slowness, exhibiting incredible control and composure. 

Akimoto makes the most of Albrecht’s featured solos to thrillingly demonstrate the depth of his abilities, featuring crisply elegant entrechat and resoundingly percussive cabriole. 

Framed by the heavenly Wilis, Akiyama and Akimoto draw forth aching yearning and plaintive longing in their delicately calibrated final pas de deux. Excellent in solos, the pair is truly exquisite together.

This premiere Australian season for The Tokyo Ballet is a landmark event for local lovers of dance. After marvelling at the riches of Giselle, it can only be hoped that the company will visit Australia again in the (not too distant) future. 

Giselle plays at State Theatre, Arts Centre Melbourne until 22 July 2023. For tickets, click here. 

Casting for Giselle can be read online.

Photos: Kate Longley