Paris, June 1841

A Star is Born

Before the premiere of Giselle, the world of ballet had been dominated for nine years by the international success of La Sylphide (1832) and its leading lady, Marie Taglioni.

In June 1841, La Sylphide's pre-eminence was ended by the sensational premiere of Giselle and its prima ballerina, Carlotta Grisi.

The first production opened on Monday 28th June at the Paris Opera with Carlotta Grisi as Giselle, Adèle Dumilâtre as Myrtha and Lucien Petipa as Albrecht. It was an immediate smash.

This is What We Call a Ballet!

Thanks to the digitisation work of the Bibliotheque national de France we are able to read the first review of the first performance.