Royal Ballet: Giselle review – Marianna Tsembenhoi soars in an indelible debut

Royal Opera House, LondonThe Ukrainian dancer brings clarity and feeling to the role opposite a smart, subtle performance by Joseph Sissens A dancer’s debut in one of ballet’s great leading roles is always an event, but it’s particularly notable when that dancer is a first artist – three ranks below principal in ballet’s hierarchy. Twenty-five-year-old Marianna Tsembenhoi is clearly being tipped as a future star and the Royal Ballet’s faith in her looks well placed on the basis of her first outing as tragic peasant girl Giselle. From her first entrance, buoyant across the stage, the Ukrainian dancer (who came to train in the UK in 2017) impresses with her elevation, as if her weight is barely touching the ground. Tsembenhoi’s bright-eyed, girlish Giselle has the lightness of innocence and goodness. She’s technically a very tidy dancer, with long arms that sway like willow branches. Tsembenhoi is not the only one making her debut tonight. So is Joseph Sissens as the leading man, Albrecht. This is a hard character to pull off: does Albrecht genuinely love Giselle even though he’s a nobleman engaged to someone else and only posing as a peasant? (Honestly, how did he