As the curtain rises on a picturesque scene in a small German village, vinegatherers depart for the harvest. Hilarion the gamekeeper arrives, hoping to see the lovely Giselle. He hides when his rival Albrecht—really a Duke disguised as a peasant named Loys—emerges from his cottage, with his squire Wilfride. Wilfride begs his master […]
Though it’s now been three years since the premiere of Pacific Northwest Ballet’s Giselle, the idea for staging our own production was presented to me almost five ago. I had been unsuccessfully shopping for the right Giselle when Doug Fullington came to me with the suggestion that I look closer to home. […]
Peter Boal’s radiant staging of Giselle returns with all-new scenery and costumes by award-winning designer Jérôme Kaplan (above) who is best known to PNB audiences for his designs for Don Quixote, Roméo et Juliette.
Q: What steps were critical to your process in creating designs for sets and costumes for PNB’s Giselle?
Pacific Northwest Ballet’s 2011 production of Giselle has been staged by PNB artistic director Peter Boal, based in part on primary sources from Paris and St. Petersburg, with the assistance of dance historians Marian Smith and Doug Fullington. In 2014, new scenery and costumes designed by Jérôme Kaplan will be added to the production.
Recently, during a rare photo shoot in Pacific Northwest Ballet’s studios, the work of three exceptional artists–principal dancer Kaori Nakamura, costume designer Jérôme Kaplan, and photographer Angela Sterling–produced these striking images.
The shoot was an ideal opportunity to showcase Kaori Nakamura’s artistry in anticipation of the conclusion of her brilliant, 17-year performing career with the […]
WHAT’S OLD IS NEW
We’ve all noticed the shift: from artisanal breads and cheeses to homemade cider and chickens in backyards, what’s old is new again. Here in Seattle, urban farming is chic. And, at least at PNB, the old-world way of hand-painting large scenery (AKA “drops”) has never gone out of style. Nearly every set piece […]