Above, Giselle, in new location in CPA; below right is Albrecht

Since the 1990's Giselle, a 71" high bronze sculpture, has been a familiar site to Montgomery Theater-goers. The statue depicts a spirit from the acclaimed 19th-century French ballet of the same name. The well-known classic ballet tells the story of a peasant girl named Giselle who dies of a broken heart, but whose ghost protects her nobleman lover, Albrecht, from tormenting evil spirits called "Wilis." Artist Julia Lord, then a student at San Jose State University, was commissioned in 1978 to create Giselle. In 1985, Lord created the companion artwork  Albrecht, modeled after ballet superstar Mikhail Baryshnikov.

But the Giselle sculpture has a story all its own.

The Giselle and Albrecht sculptures were both originally installed on the site of what is now the Tech Museum of Innovation. In 1982, Giselle vanished, only to reappear two weeks later, a mystery that has never been solved.

Once construction on the then new Tech Museum began, Giselle and Albrecht were installed in the Montgomery Theater courtyard. But, due to technical issues with the sculpture's base, the Giselle figure fell over about a year ago, and the City felt it was time to rethink the location for both artworks. Giselle was placed in storage in the basement of the San Jose Civic Auditorium while alternative locations for the artworks were being considered and the Civic Auditorium facility was undergoing renovations.

During the summer, the nearby Center for Performing Arts (CPA) lobby was named as the new permanent home for both artworks. This site, home to season performances by Ballet San Jose and others seemed fitting. Ballet San Jose was especially excited that Giselle and Albrecht would be installed there in time for the company's celebration its 25^th Anniversary season which was to feature a production of the "Giselle" ballet. But when a member of Team San Jose, the organization that manages the City's convention and theater facilities, went to retrieve Giselle from storage, for the second time in its existence the statue had vanished.

Giselle's second mysterious disappearance soon involved the San Jose Police, local press and media coverage. And then, in a twist that no one could predict, the Police got a call from the attorney representing an unidentified person seeking to return Giselle, a move apparently sparked by the Mercury News' front-page story. And, as if from a scene in a suspense tale, Giselle was returned to the San Jose Police by the attorney middleman, draped beneath a brown plastic tarp on a hand cart in a leafy downtown alley.  

Giselle and Albrecht, with new bases designed to best display the works, are now both permanently installed in the lobby of the CPA. They were installed in time for the opening night of the Ballet's "Giselle". Although the San Jose Police continue to investigate Giselle's mysterious disappearance, it seems that Giselle's saga is over.