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A weightless Giselle flies effortlessly through the air, channeling the graceful movements of her four-legged homophone. In disobedience of her mother’s warnings she dances almost to the point of death, for one compelling reason: the love of a man in white tights.

The Moscow City Ballet’s production of Giselle by Adolphe Adam brings physical fortitude to an entirely new level. Depicting the love story of a peasant girl and a Count, everything points to inevitable tragedy. Sure enough, a broken heart results in Giselle’s premature death and Count Albrecht is doomed to dance until he dies under the spell of betrayed lovers’ ghosts. Only Giselle’s eternal love can keep him from demise.

The first of two Moscow City Ballet productions in the Bord Gáis Energy Theatre, Giselle dances Dublin into the new year after the company’s triumphant Silver Anniversary tour. Met with rapturous applause, Victor Smirnov-Golovanov’s impressive cast appear unfazed by the “aahs” and “oohs” of a captivated audience. Despite the exquisite score’s best efforts, the human body is the true star of this show. Indeed the sheer physical exuberance of the production is enough to take any breath away. In true professional fashion though, the Moscow City Ballet reveal no signs of strain as they push their bodies past conceivable limits. Only the beads of sweat dancing off their limbs betray their ethereal image and recall similar displays on the Twisted Pepper dance floor — contrary to delusions, a rather less aesthetically pleasing performance. As the curtain comes to a close, the audience is left cursing what could have been and all those ballet lessons lost. After a moment, any regrets pass, replaced by a more pressing realisation: white tights really don’t look good on anyone. Don’t try this at home kids.

Giselle runs at the Bord Gáis Energy Theatre until January 27 and The Nutcracker runs until January 31. Tickets start from €30 and are available at bordgaisenergytheatre.ie.