Giselle is an innocent and beautiful peasant girl who loves to dance, and unsuspectingly falls in love with a philandering nobleman, Albrecht. When he deceives her, she is inconsolable and dies of a broken heart.  The story continues in the moonlit land of the Wilies, a mysterious landscape inhabited by the vengeful spirits of virgin brides who never reached their wedding day. The ghostly Wilies torment Albrecht as he appears in search of the spirit of Giselle.

The duality of the body and spirit, evocation of the supernatural, and the tale of undying love and devotion endears this quintessentially romantic ballet to a universal audience.