La Sylphide 1989 Re-Restored

This ballet was performed by the Pennsylvania and Milwaukee Ballet with staging by Peter Martins and the traditional choreography by Bourneville. The cast include Melissa Podcasy, Marin Boieru, Jeffrey Gribler, Lisa Sundstrom, Edward Myers. This presentation has been re-restored and upscaled.
Laid in Scotland, James is to marry Effie, but a sylph loves him. Gurn, who is in love with Effie, reports that James is seeing someone else. The witch, Old Madge, gives James a magic scarf that will prevent the sylph from escaping with tragic results.
The ballet was laid in Scotland with men in kilts because it was an exotic romantic land. This is considered to be the earliest ballet where dancing on pointe made sense artistically and was not just fancy calisthenics. There was an earlier version by Filippo Taglioni, but the choreography has been lost. This is one of Bournonville's greatest works for the Danish Ballet.
The Bournonville technique is considered to preserve the early French style of dance. It has quick footwork with an understated style. It does not promote big showy leaps and lifts. The style is supposed to look natural, flowing and effortless.