Exceptional production underscores the enduring appeal of the classic holiday ballet

After years of reviewing many Nutcrackers by many different choreographers and companies, it’s a challenge to bring fresh eyes and sense of wonder to each year’s viewing. As a critic, it’s easy for me to forget that this is a magical introduction to dance for many kids (and kids at heart) and a cherished holiday tradition for families around the world.

In recent years, I’ve hit on the idea of taking with me someone or several guests who has never seen a production. This helps me to appreciate once again the frothy delights that are at the core of arguably the most familiar ballet in the entire classical repertoire.

It’s worth repeating a few basic facts about Nutcracker before we get to this year’s Colorado Ballet version.

The first production was performed by the Imperial Ballet in St. Petersburg in 1892, with choreography by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov to an expansive original score by Tchaikovsky. This is the version that George Balanchine danced in Russia and whose memory he brought with him when he co-founded New York City Ballet. Balanchine’s Nutcracker, which premiered in 1954, was not the first American Nutcracker (that honor goes to William Christensen’s version for San Francisco Ballet in 1944). But it was the one that popularized the ballet in America and which remains for many the gold standard of American productions, partly thanks to Balanchine’s unmatched choreography.

That is one reason it is the one performed by a number of ballet companies around the U.S., many of them directed today by alumni of New York City Ballet. But it is far from the only version, and almost every student, pre-professional and professional ballet troupe in America now performs a Nutcracker. In our stat,e the Colorado Ballet’s production is the most elaborate with the greatest number of performances each holiday season.

Jessica Lyndsey and Bryce Jackson Lee | Photo by Andrew Fassbender

A new dazzler from Colorado Ballet

This year, Colorado Ballet has unveiled a new production with sets by Thomas Boyd and costumes by Holly Hines. Both have created designs for major ballet troupes around the world and this Nutcracker is an absolute dazzler.

The ballet, like the original story by E.T.A Hoffman on which it’s based, is set on Christmas eve in the Victorian household of a German family. In that first act Boyd and Hines immediately transport us that era with their rich, jewel box colors and elaborate ornamentations. In the second act, when Clara and her Prince travel to the Kingdom of the Sugar Plum Fairy, they fabricate a lavish fairytale world of pastels and sparkles that let us know this isn’t the real world but rather one of imagination and magic.

There are many joys in this production, not the least of which is the beautiful dancing of the entire company, especially of the various lead dancers and soloists. With the most demanding role, Mackenzie Dessens Studinski is a standout as Clara, the young girl who receives a nutcracker as a Christmas gift. Studinksi is deeply attuned to Tchaikovsky’s glorious music and moves with the grace of an angel. Her leg extensions are particularly notable and she has an inherent elegance that infuses her every movement. She and Jeremy Studinski as her Nutcracker Prince are extremely well matched both in stature and technical skill and their pas de deux are some of this Nutcracker’s highlights.

Signature polish

Leah McFaddden as the Sugar Plum Fairy and Jennifer Grace as Dew Drop bring their signature polish to their expansive arabesques and turns. Also worthy of special mention is Kenny Allen as Clara’s mischievous brother Frantz. This is a role that is often eclipsed by that of Clara but Allen manages to capture the spotlight with his rapid-fire jumps, turns and leaps.

All of the soloists (too numerous to mention here) in the various Act II ethnic variations throw themselves completely into their respective dances and look like they’re having the time of their lives. The men’s and women’s corps dance with the unity required of any army of mice, toy soldiers or flower,s and the eight little angels glide across the stage as though propelled by invisible wheels.

For me, as a veteran viewer of more professional Nutcrackers than I can count, a great pleasure of this production is the clarity and freshness of the first act. In so many productions, even Balanchine’s, that act often drags, but not here. From the opening party scene through the growing Christmas Tree, the battle of the solders and mice and the ensemble dance of the flowers the action flows naturally and seamlessly. I was actually surprised, and a little disappointed, when the curtain went up at intermission. But as I knew there were bound to be more delights in store, and there were.