Every year, thousands of people attend the Boston Ballet’s performance of The Nutcracker; it is a world renowned production! The Ballet is directed by Mikko Nissinen. It kicked off its famous show on Nov. 29, 2019, and is scheduled to run through the holiday season, ending Dec. 29, 2019. I went on Thursday, Dec. 5, at 7:30 p.m., and I had been looking forward to seeing it again since I went last year. An extensive crowd filled with excitement lined up beyond the golden gates and doors of the Opera house. The inside of the building was lined with Christmas lights, decorated trees, and elegant decor.
The Boston Ballet is very prominent for good reason. It tells a story without the use of words, something that is very difficult to do. Everything from the set itself, from the orchestra to the costume designs, all the way to the actual performance, was spectacular.
The cast was made up of a collaborative group of talented dancers, each of which had different scenes and solos of their own to perform at some point during the show. That particularly stood out to me, because there wasn’t ever someone who had the spotlight for an extended amount of time. I appreciate that, as everyone involved in the performance was so talented and deserved to have the spotlight for some time. With that said, of course we still have the characters that we all know and love: Clara, the Nutcracker, the Snow Queen, the Sugarplum Fairy, and more. The performance was broken up into two parts, with an intermission in between. Beyond this, we see separate scenes with various background settings, ranging from a beautiful mansion to a giant lit up Christmas tree to a snowy forest. The background looked three-dimensional and made everything appear that much more realistic, something that is often a challenge for performances like this.
The transitions between scenes were effortless and beautiful. We were able to see what Clara is feeling, thinking, and doing based off the dancers in front of us. As she dreams, the crowd dreams alongside her. And boy, does it feel like a dream. The dancers dazzle under the lights, flowing so beautifully alongside one another, completely in sync. As Clara dazes off, we see the toys the children received for Christmas come alive. A Barbie, a giant teddy bear, and a jack in the box all broke free through their wrapping, and we watched as they danced around Clara’s mind.
As snow fell from the sky onto the stage, a carriage with Clara and The Nutcracker led by “reindeer”, who were actually tiny, adorable children with bells for collars, entered the stage with an open forest set behind them. It wasn’t long until the Snow Queen and her prince took the stage and performed for Clara and her company. Fog filled the stage at one point, as a cloud came over to take away Clara and her prince, The Nutcracker. They both stepped right in and floated away from the stage, seemingly into the sky.
After the intermission, we were taken on a trip around the world. We saw different people from different countries and different cultures all perform in their own unique ways. It made the performance feel like we were the ones dreaming, as if we went on a magic carpet ride next to Clara. It was truly beautiful. All I can say to express how it felt to witness something like this is that it made me believe in magic. To say it is an experience would be an overwhelming understatement. It brings the joy, magic and innocence that you only feel as a child back to life for Christmas time. If you want to witness this for yourself, you’re in luck! Students get a discount with the purchase of a regular adult ticket, so get yours before the holidays are over!
The performers that made up the show I attended are listed on The Boston Ballet’s site, cited below. Sugar Plum Fairy: Seo Hye Han; Nutcracker Prince: Patric Palkens; Dew Drop: Dawn Atkins; Snow King & Queen: Soo-bin Lee and Patrick Yocum; Herr Drosselmeier: Lasha Khozashvili
