ONE of the most highly anticipated cultural events of the year, English National Ballet presents the world premiere tour of Akram Khan's Giselle this autumn.

One of the greatest romantic ballets of all time, Giselle is Akram Khan’s first full length ballet and will see Academy-Award winning designer Tim Yip, known for his work on the hit film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, create the set and costumes, while composer Ben Frost will create an adaptation of the original score, performed live by English National Ballet Philharmonic.

The iconic piece comes to the Mayflower stage next week and ahead of its run, from Wednesday to Saturday, we went backstage to talk to Helen Johnson, costume supervisor for the production, and Amanda Barrow, the costumier working on the costumes for the Wilis and the Outcasts part of the ballet.

Q: In terms of costumes, what makes this production different from a classical Giselle?

Helen Johnson: "I’ve seen a few different productions of Giselle in my time. I think that anyone who has worked on a Giselle would say that every new production is completely individual because every time that you’re working on a design, it’s an individual response to a set of artistic parameters.

For this Giselle, our artistic parameters are different, they’re pushed out further than they would be in lots of classical ballet where some aspects, like the music for example, would stay the same. With this Giselle, we know that the bounds of the story will remain the same but that’s about it - not only is the choreography new, which pushes the parameters, but we also have new music as well so we know it’s going to be pretty different. So, it’s almost like looking at it with new eyes but we still have to have an understanding of the classical tradition of the story."

Q: So how do you translate Tim Yip’s designs into reality?

Amanda Barrow: "I had my first conversation with Tim in May of this year and he told me what he wanted from the Wilis and the Outcasts. For me and my team we start by looking at the technical aspect, I have to work out how the dancers can best move in the costume. We have a foundation garment for the Wilis dress which is based on a powernet leotard and knickers. The powernet material is a stretch net which holds the body without restricting it, it bends very easily and is breathable so not too hot. Once we’ve fitted this part to the dancer and made sure it’s correct we create the dress component to sit on the top and this is the part where we actually make it look like the design."

Q: Helen, as a costume supervisor, can you tell us how many people are working altogether on the costumes?

Helen Johnson: "There a lot of people working on the costumes, it would be hard to say exactly how many but around 20. For example, the costume for one of the court ladies is this big white dress and that alone has so many people working it from a knitter, to the person making the body of the dress, to a person who has created these huge paneers to help the dress stick out at the sides, the hat maker, the shoe supervisor, the dyer… All these people are working on creating this one costume. I think the fitting for that dress had the most people present I have ever seen at a fitting!"

Q: Akram Khan’s Giselle sees Act ll set in an abandoned factory, the Wilis here are the ghosts of the female factory workers who seek revenge for the wrongs done to them in life. How has this world been interpreted in the costumes?

Helen Johnson: "When I look at the costumes I always look at the set design at the same time so that you can understand how your costumes are to become a part of that world created on stage. Each costume maker working on the designs is helping you populate this world, as a team you all have to be aware of what you are trying to create and be interpretive of that world in a useful way – you want to know that if a character is standing there, what are they standing on, what’s behind them, what’s next to them, and why as well. With this Giselle, this act is very sort of industrial. It’s very, very dark."

Q: These are brand new costumes, how long do the dancers need to dance in them before they become comfortable in them?

Amanda Barrow: "Specifically with the Willies dresses they should be comfortable immediately, because they are so flexible, and they are based on Lycra, so they can move with ease. There is nothing to impede the movement, and the dancer should not even be aware of the costume, because that will then cause problems with their concentration on the choreography, which is not the point of having the costume there."

Q: How long does it take to make one Wilis dress?

Amanda Barrow: "Probably once all the components are together, it’s going to be 3-4 days per dress, but we have six people working on them full time for about a month and a half. There are 24 dresses."

Q: What's the most important thing for you in a costume?

Helen Johnson: "I think that the costume is there to serve the production, and I'm interested in costumes that work for the production. I think it’s really nice to sit and look at something and think that the detail is beautiful, the dying, the trim; but actually the whole point of my job is to make costumes that help the performer create the artistic vision of the director or the choreographer, so the audience can understand and interpret it. This means that the artist has to be really comfortable and at ease, particularly for dancers as they are on stage doing something technically very difficult. So, usually I'm most delighted by the costumes when they’re almost invisible, that you’re just completely drawn in by the whole world of the show rather than feeling like the costume is something that has been painted on the top."

Amanda Barrow: "Well the fit has to be fantastic, it has to work with the dancer and not hamper their movement. But for me the most important thing is that it has an extra something that lifts it out of being a good costume and makes it a fantastic costume."

Q: What’s your biggest worry or fear about the costumes?

Helen Johnson: "That they’re going to get dirty in the theatre. We’ve got a white costume that’s 5m wide and it’s made very, very beautifully of silk and lace with hand knitted elements – it will be very difficult to clean if it gets dirty in the theatre. So that was what I was thinking of today, what are our chances of getting that white dress on to the stage clean!"

Amanda Barrow: "My biggest worry, specifically with the Wilies costumes, is leaving a pin under one of the folds in the fabric, which could injure a dancer, that’s my biggest worry."

Q: What’s the most rewarding thing for you in making costumes?

Helen Johnson: "To be in proximity to the people that I work with, because I’ve got enormous respect for their craft. In the world I feel there are less and less people who are making their living exclusively by doing something extraordinary with their hands than no one else can do. So I feel really honoured to be working amongst some of the best craftsmen and women in the world. And the same with Tim, to be working with Tim is an enormous privilege, so I feel very, very lucky to be around the people that I'm around."

Amanda Barrow: "The most rewarding part of the entire costume making process is seeing the costumes on stage after months and months of hard work, and feeling that everybody, from the dancers to the choreographer to the designer is happy with the product."

Tickets: 023 8071 1811 or mayflower.org.uk