I am now officially on winter break and I am so happy to have a little bit of time off! I celebrated the end of the longest week in recorded history by going to see Ballet West's The Nutcracker last night and it was wonderful! This is one of my favorite Christmas traditions and, even though I have seen this ballet more times than I can count, I always look forward to every scene! The party for Clara and Fritz is enchanting, the Nutcracker coming to life is magical, and the dance of the Snow Queen and her snowflakes is dazzling. When Clara and her Nutcracker Prince travel to the land of the Sugar Plum Fairy, I love all of the divertissements devised for Clara's entertainment but my favorites are the Arabian dance because it is so exotic and the Russian dance for the sheer athleticism! My favorite scene in the entire ballet is the Grand Pas de Deux between the Sugar Plum Fairy and her Cavalier because Tchaikovsky's music and William Christensen's choreography in this section are unbelievably romantic. Emily Adams and Adrian Fry danced their roles beautifully and I thought they had a lot of chemistry. The sets and costumes were completely redesigned last year and I really like the changes because the party scene incorporates rich jewel tones and the land of the Sugar Plum Fairy is more exotic. I also really like all of the special effects, especially when the Christmas tree grows in size and the fireworks display during the finale. I love all of the children in the cast because they are so exuberant, particularly Mother Buffoon's children. I highly recommend this lovely production because it is sure to become a Christmas tradition (go here for tickets).
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