Akram Khan's Giselle

However you've found your way to seeing a filmed version of a live performance of "Akram Khan's Giselle," the rewards are many. The performances are at the highest level where every ounce of their energy is required (the second act is performed entirely en pointe which is a staggering achievement.

Khan's choreography is a melding of classic ballet, modern dance and kathrank, one of India's classic dance forms.

The final pas de deux between Albrecht and the dead Giselle can reduce you to tears.

Purists may cry foul, but the conception stands on it's own with only suggestions of the original dramaturgy. But there's nothing in Khan's version that's any more or less clear in the original.