Search - Lacotte - La Sylphide / Aurelie Dupont, Mathieu Ganio, Melanie Hurel, Jean-Marie Didiere, Ermanna Floria, Paris Opera Ballet on DVD

The Most Beautiful Ballet Of The 19th Century Recreated

Rudy Avila | Lennox, Ca United States | 09/03/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"When La Sylphide first premiered on March 12, 1832, Marie Taglioni made ballet history by dancing in the first white tutu and dancing the whole performance en pointe. It is considered the first Romantic ballet (not the court dances or court-inspired dances of the time of Louix the Fourteenth). For the first time, a world of whimsy and poetic imagery was staged. La Sylphide tells the story of a Scotsman who is married but falls for a mysterious aerial creature- La Sylphide. There is much plotless dancing and beautiful forest scenery. A villain- Madge, bent on ruining the lovers. This production from 2004 is performed by the Paris Opera Ballet company. It's beautifully re-created from the original choreography by Taglioni. The music is masterfully orchestrated and the bonus feature recounting the history is a fine addition. Own this DVD today if you love classic ballet."

Super wonderful ballet!

L. Hollister | 07/08/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Wow! This was such a terrific ballet to watch. Costumes were wonderful, sets were beautiful. The Paris Opera Ballet did such an excellent job creating this production. It is somewhat of a reproduction piece, being pieced together from original choreography with some new added. The dancing definitely has an old world "period" feel to it - not a pyrotechnical crowd jumps to their feet kind of production. I was stunned by Ms Dupont and Mr Ganio. Dupont has the most beautiful feet I have ever seen - She's a beautiful dancer, but her feet were just exquisite. And Ganio was the most graceful male dancer I've ever seen. A lot of the dancing is somewhat plotless - lots of the guy dancing with sylphs in the woods, but it doesn't get boring because you keep saying wow about the dancers. This is a must own for ballet lovers. And the interview/making of/history of La Sylphide bonus was very educating."

One of the Paris Opera Ballet's Best!

J. M WILINSKY | teaneck, NJ United States | 03/19/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is a modern, more complete version of the previous video the Paris Opera Ballet came out with in the 1960's, which featured Ghislaine Thesmar and Michael Denard. This previous one had set the standard in some ways. To be sure, Ghislaine Thesmar coaches ballerinas in the POB for this part(see some of my reviews for the POB documentaries), so her stamp is still here! This newer version compares well with the older one. Most significantly, this one is a stage production, performed with a live audience, the older one was a movie, and we get a more complete choreography here, including many solos and small group dances not seen in the older one. This classic ballet is one of the most choreographically ambitious ballets in the classical repertoire and should not be passed up! Now, this dvd will set the standard for a long time to come for the Lacotte version."

An enchanting evening

Christian Bernard | 12/03/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"We have recently bought this DVD and highly recommend it. Picture and sound quality are gorgeous. Aurélie Dupont's dancing is magnificent. She is elegant, weightless and she truly IS la Sylphide by expressing all her feelings and grace. Mathieu Gano is extremely elegant, athletic and very expressive. The "Corps de Ballet" is a model of precision and beauty. The forest décor with the flying Sylphides is magnificent. Lacotte's interview explains how he has succeeded in rebuilding the ballet as presented in 1832 from information painfully gathered over the years. A lovely moment for ballet lovers."