On Dec. 20, the curtain at the North Tahoe High School will open once again on our production of “The Tahoe Nutcracker,” which we premiered in 2019.
I have added up that I have partaken in 13 different productions. As a teen, my teacher cast me in the same role of Mirliton every year, saying “you just do it so well.” And then I arrived at Oakland Ballet, where I learned that not only would I be a sexy pink mouse, but that on opening night I would be fighting members of the Oakland Raiders & A’s teams as toy soldiers in the battle scene. As a freelance artist, I took Nutcracker gigs that toured California so I could see my family around the holidays.
But when I created a dance company in Tahoe City, making a Nutcracker was the furthest thing from my mind.
And then, it crept in. Just like those little mice in the candlelight.
When you teach an art form like ballet that – by most opinions – takes roughly a decade to master, there are milestones. I soon learned that it was as much of a milestone for me as a director/choreographer/producer to take this on and put my own stamp on it, as it would be for my students to work their way upward from tiniest mouse through their years of training.
“I have liked this ballet from the first time I danced in it as a boy at the Maryinsky Theatre,” wrote George Balanchine, who created arguably the most popular version of “The Nutcracker” in the United States on his New York City Ballet in 1954. The production he appeared in as a child in St. Petersburg was the original and was not seen as a particularly successful ballet at its premiere in 1892.
Balanchine had his own fond memories, but so does everyone who has played a part in it. Since the production does feature so many children, for many people it’s their first, and sometimes only memory, of being on a stage in a production. Dressing up, being backstage, seeing the lights and hearing the audience’s applause is magic.
At the beginning of Act 2, the whole cast welcomes Clara into the land of the sweets as her dream continues after she defeats the evil rat king and is swept off her feet by the Nutcracker Prince, through the snow. Essentially, everyone is on stage, and its my job to make sure they all enter at the right time, on the right count of music, and stand on the correct foot. Which usually happens.
As I placed our cast in a massive semi-circle, I explained that this was the music where the Sugar Plum Fairy enters, and pointed out where she will stand.
At that moment, I turned to the youngest group of dancers, who are appearing in this portion of the production for the first time after years of being little mice and girls being girls holding little toys in Act 1. I said to them, “And now, you’ll be standing on stage with one of the greatest ballerinas in the world who is going to be here with us.” Their eyes widened, jaws dropped a little, and a few even futzed with their feet to make their standing position look better.
And I wasn’t lying. We are fortunate enough to be joined, once again, by Indiana Woodward as our Sugar Plum Fairy. Indiana is a dancer for that very company that put Nutcracker on the map in the U.S., dancing Mr. Balanchine’s steps as a principal dancer in the New York City Ballet. In their most recent season, the New York Times’ Gia Kourlas called Woodward “the most effervescent dancer in the company — and possibly its best actress — is always full of subtle details.”
So there you have it. Let all holiday traditions, we collectively strive to create memories of light and joy for our young people, that they too will eventually pass on. We find solace in the beautiful music, our community, and the hope that maybe someday, we too could wear the fanciest tutu and be the best in the world.
Tahoe Nutcracker
Dec. 20-22 | North Tahoe High School, Tahoe City
Tickets laketahoedancecollective.org/tahoenutcracker
