There's Something about Giselle

She's been toyed with, traumatized, heartbroken and betrayed. She's been praised for being vulnerable — and pilloried for being a village idiot. Since her story was first performed in 1841, the ghostly, lovelorn character of Giselle has flitted her way across stages from Melbourne to Moscow and drawn interpretations that have placed her in settings ranging from a mystical glade to a mental asylum. But whatever her personal failings, the ballet of her life, death and afterlife has retained its appeal for ballet companies, dancers and audiences for more than 150 years. "There's something eternal in the...