Online: Carla Fracci gives two Giselle masterclasses from La Scala
Carla Fracci is perhaps most famous for her performances as Giselle, so how right that she should return to the theatre where her career started to coach the young dancers who will be performing the ballet at La Scala on Saturday.
Her work with the dancers can be seen on La Scala’s pages (below).
Fracci danced Giselle worldwide, and the filmed performance with the American Ballet Theatre, and Erik Bruhn as Albrecht, has become a staple in the video collection of every ballet fan. She danced the role at La Scala from 1958 to 1990 with Giulio Perugini, Bruhn, Mario Pistoni, Rudolf Nureyev, Vladimir Vasiliev, Paolo Bortoluzzi, Gheorghe Iancu, Patrick Dupond, Andris Liepa and Zoltan Solymosi.
La Scala’s Ballet Director Manuel Legris invited the 84-year-old Fracci for an “unmissable and precious opportunity to enter into the details and nuances of the character and the ballet” focusing on Giselle’s mad scene, and some of the second act scenes with Giselle and Albrecht.
The stream was recorded in the Cecchetti Rehearsal Room on the eighth floor of the theatre. The cast on Saturday sees two casts and so for the mad scene, Fracci worked with Martina Arduino as Giselle (who will be making a role debut) and Claudio Coviello as Albrecht, alongside other performers in the first act including Marco Agostino, Deborah Gismondi, Mick Zeni, Marta Romagna, Christian Fagetti, and the corps de ballet. Then, for the second act, Nicoletta Manni and Timofej Andrijashenko are the protagonists. Manuel Legris and the ballet masters Laura Contardi and Massimo Murru also participate.
Top Photo: Carla Fracci 1964 Giselle photo Erio Piccagliani
Graham Spicer, aka ‘Gramilano’, is a writer, director and photographer based in Milan. He was a regular columnist for Opera Now magazine and wrote for the BBC until transferring to Italy. His articles have appeared in various publications from Woman’s Weekly to Gay Times, and he wrote the Danza in Italia column for Dancing Times magazine. Graham was the historical advisor on Codice Carla, the 2023 documentary on Carla Fracci.
Graham also works as a dance photographer, and his photos have appeared in many books, theatre programmes, and magazines, including Dancing Times, Dance Spirit and Ballet2000, as well as all the major Italian newspapers.
He is a member of the Dance Section of The Critics’ Circle.
