NUTCRACKER! THE MUSICAL Comes to New York Tonight

Nothing's impossible in your imagination. NUTCRACKER! THE MUSICAL -- it's the Nutcracker like you've never seen it before - to be presented this holiday season in Mamaroneck and London, featuring music by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, book and lyrics by Nancy Holson, and arrangements by Bruce Kiesling with Paul and David Rigano.

From the most respected dance theatres in the world to every neighborhood ballet school, it's impossible to get through a Christmas season without visions of sugarplums dancing through your head. Attending the ballet is a rite of passage. You've heard the music, you've seen the ballet but you've never heard the whole story and you've never seen The Nutcracker like this! The Nutcracker Ballet is to NUTCRACKER! THE MUSICAL what The Wizard of Oz is to Wicked.

Using the score of Peter Ilyitch Tchaikovsky's classic ballet and drawing from the original stories by E.T.A. Hoffmann and Alexander Dumas, five-time Emmy Award-winner Nancy Holson (www.holsonproductions.com), and Bruce Kiesling, Conductor of Youth Orchestra Los Angeles and Musical Director of the Tulare County Symphony Orchestra, (bruceanthonykiesling.com) have created a new musical sure to be a holiday favorite. NUTCRACKER! THE MUSICAL is a new Christmas tradition that the whole family can enjoy.

When asked why she was inspired to create a musical out of the Nutcracker tale, Holson explained, "As a young girl, my mother took me to see the ballet -- of course. It was magical -- especially Tchaikovsky's music. As I began to look into Hoffmann's story from which the ballet was adapted, I realized that the ballet dealt with just a sliver of the original tale. The original Hoffmann story is full of colorful characters and dramatic narrative that never was part of the ballet. I thought that if the story could be reimagined as a musical and paired with new lyrics set to Tchaikovsky's music, we would have a piece which was a new spin on an established, beloved "brand". It would be a new way for families to access and enjoy this iconic material and could become a perennial holiday favorite in its own right."

NUTCRACKER! THE MUSICAL will have its first-ever productions this holiday season. The Sandbox Theater in Mamaroneck, NY is producing the developmental production which will be performed in November for nine performances tonight, November 21, 22, 27, 28 and 29. David Rigano directs, Paul Rigano is the Music Supervisor, and the talented cast is drawn from both Westchester and New York City. For more information, visit www.holsonproductions.com/westnutcracker.php.

The London production opens for the holiday season on December 8 at the Pleasance Theater in London where it runs through January 3. Ollie Fielding directs a cast featuring alumni of the West End and regional UK productions. Amy Holson-Schwartz of Peaceful Lion Productions is the producer. For more information, visit nutcrackerthemusical.com.

IF YOU GO:

Mamaroneck, NY
Tickets: $20 Students / Seniors $15
Online: www.wstshows.com/shows/
Phone: 914 630 0804

London
Tickets: Monday to Thursday £14 full price / £12 concession / £48 family ticket (two full price and two concession) Friday to Sunday £16 full price / £14 concession / £56 family ticket (two full price and two concession)
School groups: £10 with one ticket free every 10 tickets purchased.
Online: www.pleasance.co.uk/event/nutcracker-musical
Phone: +44 (0) 20 7609 1800

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