Les Sylphides / Coppelia / Giselle

Though this DVD mainly features ballerina Nadia Nerina in two Sadlers Wells/Royal Ballet 1950s productions, its highlight is the rare 1962 footage of Margot Fonteyn and her recently defected, new (and historic) partner the young Rudolf Nureyev, in Act II from Giselle. This June 1962 Giselle was filmed only four months after their 2/62 debut Giselle performance, which stirred the world's passions for this remarkable pair. Though a brief clip from Act II, it is beautifully danced, Fonteyn with her usual sure-footed, elegant grace partnered by an agile, coltish young Nureyev, whose pure talent is very evident in his leaping solo variations filled with perfect entrechats, rond de jambes, backward arches, spins and fabulous quick footwork. Fonteyn keeps time with him admirably, and at the very end we get closeups of her expressive face acting as the ultimate broken-hearted Giselle, blessing her love Albrecht back to life before lamentably leaving for the spirit world. The Nadia Nerina performances are also quite good, she a petite dancer with strong technique and sunny personality as the adorable, playful Coppelia in another great example of dance-acting. Les Sylphides is also good but as already pointed out, the foliage framing the shots, plus early ghostly apparitions are a bit distracting. All these BBC archive ballet sequences are in black & white but are relatively clear-focused despite their age.

Beautiful vintage ballet. Well worth the cost just for the Giselle. A young Nureyev at his dramatic best. A bit grainy, but so glad these were released in DVD form. So many were not and are at risk of being lost. A must for any ballet fan.

A gift for my granddaughter and she loves it....she is a promising ballerina and these were some of my favorite ballets.

Gisselle is the absolute best. i wish I could have seen it live. Fonteyn floats. you'd swear she never touches the floor. Her arms float like the branches of a willow in the wind. She is absolutely the most exquiite dancer ever in this performance. Nureyev is always good but Fonteyn is magical.

Production values mar both Les Sylphides and Coppelia. Rather than show them on stage or at least allowing us to see the dancing unimpeded, we get to watch through foliage and windows and from behind the cast. This is so counter-productive as to be infuriating when it isn't risible. At several moments in Sylphides, I was convinced the BBC had borrowed Brussels' Mannekin Pis for the occasion. This is every bit as bad as those videos of Maya who was allowed to dance in and out of camera range in Bolshoi productions of roughly the same period. We are also not allowed to watch dancing in favor of reaction shots, a lamentable trend which persists to this day. Coppelia even featured non-ballet dancers in favor of ethnic dancers. In Giselle, the Wilis are notable for their absence and this is inexcusable because it robs the dancing of its context. This is only for serious balletomanes not the general audience, as there are far better versions available.

Please advertise this as Fonteyn and Nureyev inGiselle Act 2 Pas Des Deux. This is unique and the dancing sublime. No one comes close to this interpretation. I saw this as a young recently qualified teacher in Manchester, the Opera House, England -23 years old! I remember the performance to this day and I am now 68. I have to say you are watching love between two people. One may be a spirit but she is still in love with Albrecht and that is the secret of this performance. So many Giselles are disembodied spirits and rather cold. Here you see that Giselle still loves Albrecht and of course saves him from the Wilis. The definitive Albrecht and Giselle in my opinion.

It gives me so much pleasure watching each one of these ballets. They show artists that I have only heard about from people who knew them and they are well filmed for their time so as to bring out the dancing and acting skills that made these artists famous in the ballet world. I Must mention the precision and graceful movements that enhance the dancing skills of Nadia Nerina that were made known to me from this DVD, dancing in Les Sylphides and Coppelia. It is also special to see more dancing of Fonteyn and Nureyev in the second act of Giselle than I have seen before showing more of the MAGIC that they had together. This is a DVD that I will play frequently since the reasonable quality of filming and that of the productions make this one to keep coming back to so as to see these three ballets that are testaments of the ballet in the 50's and 60's...

Another wonderful blast-from-the-past from the ICA Classics label. The Fonteyn/Nureyev Giselle Act 11 has been around on Youtube for some time now, but only in snippets. Terrific to have the full recorded version here - she all restrained elegance and warmth, he all burning ardour. One can see just how beautifully they went together. The Sylphides performance is a little anonymous but well danced and recorded. The revelation of the DVD, for me, is Nadia Nerina's Swanilda in a truncated performance of Coppleia. Her acting is vivacious and adorable; while her dancing is everything one has read about it: light, buoyant, precise with a lovely, floating jump. Her doll sequences are delightfully done with beautiful epaulement. Surely, she is one of the Royal Ballet's under-rated ballerinas? And surely the time has come for ICA Classics to release her performance in La Fille Mal Gardee? Can't wait for that. In the mean time, this DVD is highly recommended to those with an interest in English dancing in the 50s and 60s, or to anyone who values the technique and style of previous eras.

As I am a devoted fan of Fonteyn & Nureyev , I was thrilled to see the complete BBC TV presentation of the abbreviated Act 11 of "Giselle". This was done in 1962. I am always on the lookout for anything plucked from the archives that gives us another opportunity to see this one-of-a kind stunning couple. Also, it is a treat to see the artistry of Nadia Nerina in "Coppelia"

Great

A delightful disc - Coppélia is danced with such verve and sense of fun. But a warning, it's not complete. Acts I and II are shortened, and Act III is missing altogether. Still very worthwhile having, though.