WELCOME

I am so excited to present this classic and timeless ballet with the students of BlackBox Studios! It is truly a rite of passage to start participating in The Nutcracker performances. I danced in my very first The Nutcracker in 2001, and have only missed one year since-due to an injury. I was even lucky enough to do a quarantined film version of Nutcracker during the pandemic. This year I am looking forward to doing my 23rd year of performing in the The Nutcracker, as well as also embarking on passing along my knowledge and love for this ballet with the students.

THE HISTORY

The Nutcracker is a ballet based off of E.T.A. Hoffmann’s 1816 short story The Nutcracker and the Mouse King. The story was adapted into a two-act ballet by choreographer Marius Petipa and composter Pyotri Ilyich Tchaikovsky and premiered in 1892 in St. Petersburg, Russia.

Since The Nutcracker debuted in 1892 it has been an incredibly popular ballet that has been adapted by many choreographers. Most productions follow the general story, but there is great variation in the versions around the world. The first premiere outside of Russia was in England in 1934, and the San Francisco Ballet, under the Artistic Direction of William Christensen, was the first company in the United State of America to perform The Nutcracker in 1944. The New York City Ballet first performed George Balanchine’s Nutcracker in 1954. This version of The Nutcracker launched the ballet into mainstream popularity.

THE STORY of The Nutcracker

The story is of a young girl named Clara who receives the gift of a Nutcracker doll from her uncle Herr Drosselmeyer at her family’s annual Christmas party. Later that night she goes down stairs to continue to play with her Nutcracker doll, she encounters Herr Drosselmeyer who transforms the house- the Christmas tree grows, toys come to life, the house mice are life size, and her Nutcracker doll is over sized. The Nutcracker doll and the King of Mice battle, and with the help of Clara, the Nutcracker ultimately wins the battle and is transformed into a human Prince. Clara and her Nutcracker Prince travel through the land of Snow where they are greeted by the Snow Queen and her kingdom of snowflakes. Clara and the Prince arrive a the Land of Sweets, ruled by the Sugar Plum Fairy, and are entertained by the Sugar Plum Fairy and the inhabitants of Candy Land: Chocolate, Tea, Coffee, Candy Canes, Mother Ginger and the Gingerettes, Mirlitons, and Flowers. Clara slowly drifts back to consciousness and finds that she is back home. Her Nutcracker Prince has returned to his doll like form, and everything in the house is back to normal, and that the experience had all been just a beautiful and magical dream.

WHAT YOU WILL SEE TODAY

Today you will see a shortened 20 minute version of the ballet. The choreography is a mix of my own geared toward the strengths of the students, and also includes choreography from Lois Ellyn’s The Nutcracker. This shortened version of the ballet starts with the opening music of the ballet, also known as the Overture. The leading characters will take you through a quick recap of the entire ballet. We are then transported to Clara’s Christmas party where she dances with her friends. Clara waves goodbye to her friends and drifts off to sleep while playing with her Nutcracker doll. She is then awoken by Herr Drosselmeyer who invites her to travel with him through the Kingdom of Snow to the Land of Sweets. Clara meets the Snow Queen and Snowflakes and then she meets the Sugar Plum Fairy, and the other inhabitants of the land: Chocolate dancers, Tea party ladies, a Candy Cane and Peppermints, Mother Ginger and her Gingerettes, and the Plums.