London ¨C The National Ballet of Japan on Thursday staged its first hosted performance overseas at the Royal Opera House in London with its production of ¡°Giselle,¡± a masterpiece of classic ballet.
Thursday¡¯s show was the first of a total of five performances scheduled through Sunday.
Miyako Yoshida, artistic director of the NBJ, once served as principal dancer at the Royal Ballet, a ballet company based at the Royal Opera House. For Yoshida, the NBJ¡¯s London performances mark her triumphant return to the theater where she performed for many years.
In an interview on Tuesday, prior to the London performances, Yoshida said, ¡°This is a major step forward for the NBJ as it pursues globalization.¡±
¡°I hope the company will use this experience to move on to the next stage,¡± she said enthusiastically.
Two-act ¡°Giselle,¡± set in medieval Germany, depicts the tragic love story between a peasant girl named Giselle and Albrecht, an aristocrat disguised as a villager.
¡°I hope the audience will enjoy the ¡¯world¡¯ of the stage, where the characters seem as if they are actually alive, and see the expressions unique to Japanese,¡± Yoshida said.
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