It’s Nutcracker Season!

By Samantha Brant ’19, News Editor

December is nearing, pumpkin spiced lattes are appearing, and it’s getting colder outside. This only means one thing to ballet dancers: it’s time for The Nutcracker. For those of you who don’t know what The Nutcracker is, it is the classic ballet that most companies preform every year. Here is a summary of the story:

The ballet is about a girl named Clara, who goes to her family’s Christmas party and is given a magical Nutcracker doll by her eccentric Uncle Drosselmeyer. At the end of the night, Clara falls asleep under the Christmas tree, holding the Nutcracker. Clara wakes up at midnight as magical things begin to occur: her Christmas tree grows incredibly tall and all the toys underneath come to life to confront an army of mice that enters the room. There is a battle between the evil mouse king and her Nutcracker, and he defeats the mouse king. The Nutcracker transforms into a prince and takes Clara to the Land of Snow, where they meet the Snow King and Queen, and their troupe of dancing snowflakes. Next, they travel to the Land of Sweets and they meet the Sugar Plum Fairy and her Cavalier. Because the Nutcracker defeated the mouse king, he is rewarded with many dances: the Spanish, Arabian, Russian, Chinese, Mirliton, and the Waltz of the Flowers. Finally, the Sugar Plum Fairy and the Cavalier dance together. At the end of the ballet, Clara wakes up underneath the Christmas tree holding her Nutcracker.

The Nutcracker is a beautiful ballet, and every company that preforms it puts their own twist on it. For example, the Cincinnati Ballet has a poodle that is Clara’s best friend and goes with her on all of her adventures. For every person who has never seen The Nutcracker before, I feel that it is a rite of passage for anybody who would like to become a fan of ballet. So when December comes around, go watch The Nutcracker!

Sources:

http://www.nutcrackerballet.net/html/nutcracker_story.html