Review: Joffrey's Magical, Classic THE NUTCRACKER A Treat for Young and Old

It's that time of year, folks, when kids get insanely restless and parents try, really hard, to come up with a perfect night's out to please everyone. Fortunately for us the Kennedy Center has opened its holiday season with the Joffrey Ballet's brilliant, fascinating production of "The Nutcracker." With a stellar company, stunning set and lights, not to mention choreography for mature and young audiences alike, it is a truly joyful event.

Although universally admired today, "Nutcracker" seems to have had a rough backstory. Tchaikovsky always loved E.T.A. Hoffman's original story, (Hoffmann inspired many composers throughout the 1800's), but was disturbed to learn that Marius Petipa, the great French choreographer and his collaborator, would base the dance's story on a later French adaptation by Alexandre Dumas--which Tchaikovsky regarded as inferior.

It didn't help that there was little in the way of plot--the second act famously consists of a series of utterly sequences featuring dancers in exotic costumes, topped off by a fabulous pas-de-deux that seems to have no reason to exist, apart from Petipa calling for one.

Put it another way: "The Nutcracker" began its stage life as a typical Hollywood-style treatment of a beloved Children's story. And although it has become a fixture for dance troupes the world over today, the original St. Petersburg production was judged a failure by none other than Tchaikovsky himself.

There isn't a whiff of failure here though, from the lavish living room of Mayor Stahlbaum in the first scene --complete with magical, growing Christmas tree--to the hauntingly beautiful Land of Snow, whose subtle lighting and gentle snowfall will melt even the most hardened theatre-goer.

With Act II, the audience is transported to the Kingdom of Sweets, remarkably uncluttered when compared with where we've been before, and with good reason: here is where the real fun begins, with dancers taking star turns in singles, pairs, and -- in the case of Mother Ginger and her charges -- a delightfully massive puppet. What is especially pleasing to report is the way that the dancer manage to keep younger audiences entertained, while occasionally nodding and winking to the grown-ups with a kick here, a flourish there. By far the most erotic encounter, "Coffee from Arabia", features Christine Rocas and Rory Hohenstein in fluid, sinuous action--accented by some especially fine English Horn from the pit -- that leaves the elders in the house wondering whether coffee was involved, or some controlled substance.

What makes Robert Joffrey's production, set in America in the 1850's, truly remarkable is that it is a living monument not just to the original production, but to the avant-garde artists of the Twentieth Century. The original staging here was based on a Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo production based on the original Marius Petipa version. Joffrey's team drew from the Ballet Russe tradition of Sergei Diaghilev, and of course the Joffrey Ballet is famous for its careful recostructions of their most famous works. Here, the discerning eye can see the history of modern ballet unfold, in sync with the movements of a beloved childen's story.

Consider Lucas Segovia's darkly powerful performance as Drosselmeyer, whose daemonic moves evoke the Charlatan in Stravinsky's Petrushka -- another ballet that brought fully-grown puppets to life. The ability to weave eroticism (discreetly here, it's still a kid's show), the Ballets Russes' insistence that each character has a distinct physicality, and the way that the Nutcracker Prince (the incredible Temur Suluashvili) leaps and flutters in ways that Nijinsky himself might envy.

This visit marks the final performances of Joffrey's American-style "The Nutrcracker." If you've missed its all-too-brief visit to the Kennedy Center, consider treating yourself to a visit to the Joffrey's artisti home in Chicago. It is a rare gem with many facets, well worth the journey.

"The Nutcracker" plays at the Kennedy Center Opera House, November 25-29. For more information and tickets call 202-467-4600, or visit www.kennedy-center.org .

To post a comment, you must register and login.