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On a cold wintry Christmas Eve, Clara’s family is trimming the tree and exchanging gifts. Clara’s mother receives a beautiful necklace, Clara’s father receives a magician’s set, and Clara is presented with a Nutcracker doll! Things get a little out of hand as Clara’s father pretends to be a magician. Soon, the Christmas Eve magic comes to an end and Clara must go to bed. She begs to take her new doll with her, but she must leave the Nutcracker behind. The hour grows late, and as Clara’s mother and father go to bed, Clara sneaks back to find her Nutcracker doll! She falls asleep with the Nutcracker in her arms.
Clara is awakened by a mouse stealing her Nutcracker as the entire living room is transformed into a battlefield where the horrible Rat Queen fights the Nutcracker. The Rat Queen is about to stab the Nutcracker when Clara takes her shoe off and hits the Rat Queen, confusing him greatly. The fierce battle ends when the Nutcracker fatally hurts the Rat Queen. Clara's distress is dissipated when a lovely Frost Dancer comes to soothe her. Soon, what once was Clara’s living room, is transformed into a frosted land where Clara meets the Snow Queen and is presented with her handsome Nutcracker prince.
The Nutcracker invites Clara to a dreamy journey to the Land of Sweets, where they encounter a Sugar Plum Fairy and her Honey Fairies. The Sugar Plum Fairy invites Clara and the Nutcracker Prince to stay, and visitors from faraway lands arrive to entertain them with colorful dances. The Dew Drop Fairy, Flowers, and Garland sweep Clara into their waltz and after the Sugar Plum Fairy rises to dance for Clara, it is time to say goodbye. Clara’s mother finds her asleep on the couch. Clara has dreamt of The Nutcracker.
THE LAND OF SWEETS
THE LAND OF SWEETS
DIVERTISSEMENT - A BREAK IN THE ACTION
DIVERTISSEMENT - A BREAK IN THE ACTION
In the second section of The Nutcracker Ballet, the Prince escorts Clara to the Land of Sweets where they are welcomed by the Sugar Plum Fairy. This begins the diverstissement. In ballet and opera, a divertissement creates a pause or break in the action. These dances are often considered the highlights of the ballet, even though very little happens in the storyline. When the Prince describes their daring battle with the mice army, the Sugar Plum rewards them with a celebration of dances. Different nationalities are represented by the dances of the sweets. When the ballet was created, several foreign delicacies were very special and rare. People did not travel the world frequently, so foreign products were much harder to get. The dances performed by the sweets represent delicacies that were considered special enough to be a part of Clara’s fantasy world. The dancers' costumes resemble the "sweets" they bring from their countries.
Arabian
Arabian
Coffee
Chinese
Chinese
Tea
Russian
Russian
Candy Canes
Spanish
Spanish
Chocolate
Reed Flutes
Reed Flutes
Marzipan
Mother Ginger
Mother Ginger
Bon Bons
Activity
Activity
Click on the link below to play a magical Nutcracker game. Listen to each clip of music. Then guess which country you believe is represented by that song. Along the way, you will learn more about the countries represented, the delicacies, and the dances that you will see during the live performance.
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