Our NGSB Company dancers will soon be performing The Nutcracker Twist. Miss Bethany first choreographed and premiered this ballet years ago and is excited to see NGSB dancers debut it this season! If you’re wondering how exactly The Nutcracker Twist ballet is different from a regular Nutcracker and what the inspiration behind it was, Miss Bethany explains her ballet here:
Having performed The Nutcracker hundreds of times throughout my career and with so many different studios and companies performing classic Nutcracker ballets each year, I wanted to choreograph something with a new and fresh take on this classic.
Instead of the usual Victorian-era setting for Nutcracker, I chose the 1940’s as the time period for The Nutcracker Twist. Why? I’ve always been inspired by the music, popular swing dancing, fashion and style of this time and by the people of this generation. My maternal grandparents, always stylish and elegant were fantastic swing dancers and I always imagined them at elegant holiday parties. The Party Scene in the Nutcracker Twist emulates what I thought these parties would be like (with an added dose of Nutcracker magic, of course!) Both my grandfathers were in WW2 and both my grandmothers were strong women of this “Greatest Generation.”
I wanted to highlight the strength of the women of this time period, so I updated some of the characters in the original ballet. I changed the magic “Drosselmeyer” character into a female, added in tapping “Rosie the Riveters” to help propel the story, changed the evil Mouse King to a Fosse-style jazzy Mouse Queen, and changed the main character, Mary (normally Clara or Marie,) from a young girl into an older teenager on the brink of falling in love for the first time.
One of my favorite updated scenes is the “Angels” scene. Normally, the Clara character travels to the Land of the Sweets in Act 2 and is greeted by somewhat random Angels. To give more meaning to this role, I wanted to highlight the accomplishments and strength of the Nurses in this WW2 time period. I once read a quote about the Nurses during WW2: "They were angels on the battlefield, bringing comfort and care to wounded soldiers in the midst of chaos." If you watch closely, you’ll see the Nurses turn into Angels while they are helping the injured soldiers on stage!
Other changes in the storyline include the character of William (normally the “Nutcracker Prince,”) as a war hero that returns home to surprise everyone, brave, strong, and all grown-up. Instead of a normal trip to the “Land of Sweets” from different countries in Act 2, I have William telling Mary about his adventures around the world during the previous few years.
I enjoyed researching quite a bit about this time period before I put the ballet storyboard together. For the music, I love the Duke Ellington version of Nutcracker Suite plus the music from The Harlem Nutcracker among others. I also researched the most popular names at the time changing “Clara” to “Mary,” “Hans“ to “William,” the brother “Fritz” to “Francis,” and “Herr Drosselmeyer” to “Madame Duvall.” I even researched the new and most popular toys at the time. In the Party Scene, you’ll spot the “new” Slinky toy in addition to dolls and ice skates that were popular the time. You will, of course, also spot the Nutcracker as a gift to Mary! The most fun part has been choosing the hairstyles and costumes for the Party Scene to be on trend and chic for the 1940’s.
NGSB Company dancers practice their hairstyles for Nutcracker Twist rehearsal
I enjoyed revamping the regular Nutcracker to highlight the extraordinary people, culture, and times of the 1940’s while still maintaining the holiday spirit and magic of the classic ballet. We would love for you to come see The Nutcracker Twist in action! Tickets are available here: www.ngaschoolofballet.com
The Nutcracker Twist Synopsis:
Mary, a teenager in the 1940’s, is at her family’s annual holiday party when a surprise guest arrives. Madame Duvall’s son, William, has returned from the war and has arrived just in time for the party. Having not seen him for four years, Mary now sees him in a new light and begins to fall for him. Madame Duvall brings all her magical toys to give to the children and gives a special Nutcracker to Mary, only for it to be broken by her jealous brother Francis! When Mary falls asleep that night, she dreams that her Nutcracker comes to life and turns into William. He wins a battle against the mean mice and travels with her through the snow while telling her of his adventures while he was deployed. They meet the nurse that saved his life and Rosie the Riveters who bring Mary a magic mirror. When she looks into the mirror, she magically turns into a Sugarplum Fairy. William takes her all over the world while telling of his travels. Eventually Mary wakes up and wishes that her dream had been true. Will William feel the same way?
Come see the show and find out! Tickets: www.ngaschoolofballet.com
Kommentare