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In this article, Madison Heth writes all about The Nutcracker ballet. She touches on the history of The Nutcracker, the story the ballet follows, and information on Grants Pass' very own Nutcracker ballet.
The nutcracker ballet
The nutcracker ballet
By Madison Heth
By Madison Heth
The Nutcracker ballet is one of the most well-known ballet performances to exist. For decades, it has been performed at hundreds of different ballet companies and studios all over the world, with the New York City Ballet’s Nutcracker being a well-known favorite. Attending a performance of The Nutcracker is a Christmas tradition for many and The Nutcracker gained much fame over the years. However, The Nutcracker ballet was not always here. In fact, it was 130 years ago that the very first performance of The Nutcracker ballet debuted.
The Nutcracker Ballet is a classic story that was generally based off of the book, The Nutcracker and The Mouse King, by E. T. A. Hoffmann. The book was written in 1816. The original Nutcracker ballet was created by choreographer Marius Pepita, and it was set to music composed by Tchaikovsky. In Dec. 1892, the first show of The Nutcracker was performed in St. Petersburg, Russia, at the Imperial Mariinsky Theatre. Many studios and companies choreograph their own versions of The Nutcracker, yet still keeping to the classical story. The Nutcracker consists of two acts, each about 50 minutes in length. The Nutcracker ballet’s story is centered on a family's traditional Christmas Eve party, where a girl goes on an adventure with her beloved Nutcracker.
A photo of the Party Scene during Drosselmeyer's entrance featuring Clara (Rhylen Dittmer) and Clara’s best friends (Eden Daggett [left] and Kaiya Snodgrass [right]) in the 2021 Stillpoint Productions Nutcracker Ballet, taken by Jim Ingraham Photography
The original Nutcracker ballet focuses on the experience of a young girl named Clara (also known as Marie in other versions). Clara is gifted a nutcracker by her magical godfather, Drosselmeyer. The show opens in Drosselmeyer's Toy Shop, where he prepares his mechanical dolls, rag dolls and other presents for the Christmas Eve party. Meanwhile, at the party, Clara and her little brother Fritz are waiting for the guests to arrive. When Drosselmeyer arrives at the party with his nephew, he gifts Clara a nutcracker doll.
The party comes to a close and Clara goes to bed. While she sleeps, Drosselmeyer uses his magic over her and she wakes up to find that her nutcracker doll has come alive. The Rat Queen (or Rat King in some versions) enters and a battle ensues between Clara with her nutcracker and the Rat Queen with her group of rats. In the battle scene, the nutcracker transforms from a doll into a prince to finish the fight with the Rat Queen.
A photo of the Rat Queen (Ashlyn Mosier) and Fritz (Liam Roby) in action during the Battle Scene from the 2021 Stillpoint Productions Nutcracker Ballet, taken by Jim Ingraham Photography.
A photo of the ending scene in The Nutcracker when Clara (Rhylen Dittmer) wakes up from her dream, from the 2021 Stillpoint Productions Nutcracker Ballet, taken by Jim Ingraham Photography.
Act one ends with Clara and her prince defeating the Rat Queen and traveling through the snow to the Kingdom of Sweets, where the Sugar Plum Fairy rules. Act two opens with a dance of the angels, who guide Clara and the Prince to the Sugar Plum Fairy and into the Kingdom of Sweets. Inside the Kingdom of Sweets, Clara and the Prince are delighted with meeting Candy Canes (Russian), Hot Chocolate (Spanish), Tea (Chinese), Coffee (Arabian) and more. After watching the candies perform for them, Clara wakes up holding her nutcracker to find that her adventure was a dream. The show concludes with Clara lifting up her nutcracker, happy for the adventure she had.
The Nutcracker ballet is loved by many people, whether or not they are dancers. Clemency Burton-Hill, a writer with the BBC, says that a Nutcracker fan told her that, without The Nutcracker, it “just wouldn’t be Christmas!” The Nutcracker ballet is a great place for people who may not know much about the art of ballet to come and have the full, beautiful experience of the live art form. The ballet is not just for adults; children also can enjoy the production of The Nutcracker ballet. Daniel J. Wakin from The New York Times once said, “It is an important introduction to the art form for children.” Attending The Nutcracker is a perfect way to experience the Christmas season.
Stillpoint Productions has been bringing the magic of The Nutcracker to Grants Pass for 30 years, and this year marks 31! Penny King and Jocelyn Schmidt, the directors and choreographers of the Grants Pass Nutcracker, are working hard choreographing and designing this year's performance. This Nutcracker season, Kaiya Snodgrass, a freshman at Grants Pass High School, has been cast as the starring role of Clara. She will play alongside Seth Imel, a sophomore at Grants Pass High School, who has been cast as the Nutcracker Prince/Drosselmeyer’s Nephew– Clara’s companion throughout the story. The cast has been working hard, attending rehearsals every week and learning the choreography for the show.
This year is the perfect time to see the magic of The Nutcracker. The Stillpoint Productions Nutcracker Ballet will be performing for two weekends in Dec. at the Grants Pass Performing Arts Center. The first weekend's shows will be Dec.10, 2022 at 7:00 p.m. and Dec. 11, 2022 at 2:00 p.m. The second weekend’s show times are Dec. 17, 2022 at 2:00 p.m and 7:00 p.m, along with Dec. 18, 2022 at 2:00 p.m. Tickets are $20 for adults and $15 for students and seniors and are available at the GP Nutcracker website.
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