Analysis Of The Nutcracker Ballet

The many aspects that make the classic The Nutcracker ballet a delight to watch were demonstrated by the graceful and talented dancers at the Benedum Center’s evening performance on December 28. Beautiful dancing and the music of Tchaikovsky brought the stage to life as the story unfolded with Christmas Eve in the Stahlbaum home as the opening scene. The daughter of the Stahlbaum family, Marie (Hannah Carter), receives a nutcracker and pointe shoes. The nephew (Joseph Parr) tries his best to impress Marie, but he cannot, because of his hideous appearance that resulted from the evil rat king’s curse. As everyone falls asleep, the house becomes enchanted under a spell and Marie travels to the Land of Enchantment with her beloved nutcracker, (Joseph Parr), who has now come to life and revealed himself and the nephew. She goes on many adventures with him and meets people from all over the world who dance for her. At the end of her journey, she awakens in her house which has returned to normal and is now in love with the nephew, whose curse was lifted. She wonders if it was all a dream, until she finds the scarf she received from the Land of Enchantment. In this ballet adapted by E.T.A. Hoffman, Marie learns that there is more to a person than just how they look.

The Nutcracker was adapted for the stage and directed by Terrence S. Orr, in which the the beautiful dances for the ballet were choreographed by Marianna Tcherkassky and Steven Annegarn. Individually, the dancers were flawless and graceful with every step, using facial expressions to create emotions and connections with the audience. Marie (Hannah Carter) was a captivating dancer, with her petite figure gracefully leaping across the stage, showing her longing for romance. S...

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...ere divided into the orchestra, which were on the bottom, and the balcony. The orchestra seats surround the stage and the orchestra pit. From there, you are able to easily see the facial expressions of dancers, which makes the ballet even more exciting to watch. The whole stage is able to be seen from the orchestra seats. From the balcony, the entire stage is also able to be see, but the seats are only higher up and farther away, so viewers are not able to see the facial expressions of the dancers as well.

This production of The Nutcracker had dancers of all ages is always a delight to watch. This very entertaining ballet, even with no spoken words, showed humor through the actions of the dancers. This ballet was very well worth the ticket price, as it contained all of the classic dances, music, and a little pizzazz from each of the dancers of the ballet company.