English National Ballet: Nutcracker Delights

[capybara]

An hour long confection of storytelling, animated cartoons to get the story across and get through most of Act 1 combined with the Acts 1 and 2 pas de deux, the fight, the snowflakes and all save The Arabian and Mirlitons from Act 2. The omissions are understandable given the somewhat dubious nature of Eagling’s Arabian and the fact that his Mirlitons normally comprises Clara’s sister as a butterfly.

It was performed delightfully by all concerned, with an adapted musical accompaniment. The filming, arranged at short notice, was deft and included believable dubbed applause which lent atmosphere to the proceedings

Very different from BRB’s offering but just as well worth watching - free of charge with donations encouraged.

[Beryl H]

I thought this was an inspired mix of animations and the dancing highlights of The Nutcracker, I haven't seen it all yet but it started where I start watching a DVD of Nutcracker, having missed the party and battle, it has it's own mood on screen and is very artistic and enjoyable.  I should have seen this cast at the Coliseum on Tuesday and am so pleased to now be able to see Natascha Mair, who is a lovely expressive dancer and an ideal Clara.

 

I imagine this adaptation will be a huge success for ENB!

[Jeannette]

I truly loved this! Sometimes it’s great to put the kids to bed early...(wink).

 

Very beautiful leads - all four of them.

[Irmgard]

ENB’s “Nutcracker Delights” is just that – a sheer delight from start to finish.  Coming, as it did, on Christmas Eve afternoon when I should have been watching it live in the beautiful Coliseum, it provided welcome compensation for not being there in person.  ENB had divided into two groups to comply with Covid rules, with two casts in each group.  London moved into Tier 3 just before the production was due to open but each group got two run-throughs in costume on the Coliseum stage in the hope that theatres might be allowed to open after 26 December.  The first night cast was then filmed over two days as a contingency plan if restrictions were not lifted, presumably with colleagues in their group and some backstage staff providing a small audience in the auditorium which the Coliseum, like all theatres, had worked so hard to make Covid-safe.

 

This charming film by Michael Nunn and William Tuckett romps through Act I in the form a Victorian cut-out theatre, animating lovely illustrations by Ain Vares in which it is possible to recognise some of the dancers, including those sadly no longer with the company, with narration by Simon Callow, before dissolving into the ‘live’ Clara and Nutcracker performing the Act I pas de deux which, for me, is the most beautiful music in the whole ballet.  This is followed by the enchanting dance of the Snowflakes which, borrowed from a 20^th century Russian production, I think is one of the loveliest versions of this dance.  Watching the joy and enthusiasm with which it is danced, it is hard to believe most of these dancers have not set foot on a stage since 18 January! It is led by the radiant Alison McWhinney and Precious Adams, and my eye was particularly drawn to the elegance and grace of Emily Suzuki, as it was in the Waltz of the Flowers.  Snowflakes leads to Clara and the Nutcracker escaping from the King Rat in a hot-air balloon and it was a joy to see Daniel Kraus, one of the alarming number of company stalwarts who left in August, guesting to repeat his wonderfully mischievous King and making the most of his extended appearance clinging to the ropes of the balloon as it flies over various countries represented by the divertissements in Act II.  Of these, we only had three of the usual five in Eagling’s production and I particularly missed the dance of the Mirlitons, a charming pas de deux for Clara’s sister and Drosselmeyer in this production.  However, there was a wonderfully vivacious Spanish dance from Jung Ah Choi, Ivana Bueno and Daniel McCormick, an energetic Chinese dance from Carolyne Galvao, Rhys Antoni Yeomans and Miguel Angel Maidana, and a truly virtuosic Russian dance from Ken Saruhashi.  I love the Waltz of the Flowers in this production, with its vibrant, joyous dancing for eight couples, led again by McWhinney and Adams partnered by Skyler Martin and Matthew Astley respectively.  This was one dance in which I would have preferred fewer close-ups as it is at its most spectacular when all eight couples are visible, and I missed my favourite moment, when the ladies in the six supporting couples jeté towards their partners, turning in mid-air to be caught in a fish dive.  We then come to the highlight of the ballet, the grand pas de deux.  In a change from the production’s usual casting, the Sugar Plum Fairy is danced by another dancer instead of Clara transforming into her.  And here we had the greatest delight of the show – the exquisite Sugar Plum Fairy of Erina Takahashi.  Watching the flawlessness and youthful radiance of her dancing, it is hard to believe this is her 24^th season with the company! Her Prince is Joseph Caley, who is a noble and considerate partner with a quiet elegance to his virtuosity.  It was perhaps unfair for new principal Natascha Mair to have to make her company debut as Clara in this film, being in the company of dancers who have created wonderful, believable characters of the roles they have been dancing for a number of years.  She is a nice dancer but I found her Clara to be rather two-dimensional and her dancing to be correct but with no emotional depth.  I can think of at least one First Soloist in the company who always takes my breath away in both the Act I pas de deux and the Act II pas de trois which Clara performs, not only by the emotional depth she brings to the character but also with the sheer perfection of her dancing. Mair was partnered by Aitor Arrieta as the Nutcracker, who is a natural prince, always presenting his ballerina to perfection.  He also always manages to get under the skin of any character, even a Nutcracker!  He partnered Mair with great tenderness and then, in his solo moments, burst forth with sparkling virtuosity. 

 

The ENB Philharmonic, under Maestro Gavin Sutherland, plays magnificently throughout, bringing a wonderful vibrancy and energy to Tchaikovsky’s beloved score, indicating how happy they are to be back in the pit.  Reading the credits at the end, I was surprised that this was actually a reduced orchestration, and Sutherland is to be congratulated on his skill in making it seem as if we had not lost one instrument from this magical score.

 

This is truly a wonderful Christmas present from ENB, and the joy will continue well into January!

[LACAD]

I must say I really enjoyed this shortened version, I’m not a major fan of the party proceedings in Act 1 and the battle so it was nice getting to see the highlights. I was curious about why they picked Mair as Clara for this film as she’s the most recent addition but probably the motive was to create a buzz around their newest addition (I’m hoping there are more across all ranks to come once things slowly return to normal following the sudden loss of a number of dancers). Mair was light and cheery, with the most effortless arabesque and a brilliant weightless quality, and Arrieta shined. The diverts and waltzes were all brilliantly danced but of course the highlight was the Grand Pas de Deux. Takahashi was especially sublime in this, and frankly is one of the finest sugarplums I’ve seen- utter control and ease, probably one of the finest classicists in the company.

[annekh510]

On 25/12/2020 at 11:45, Irmgard said:

ENB’s “Nutcracker Delights” is just that – a sheer delight from start to finish. 

I appreciate all the details, as ENBs Nutcracker is not a production familiar to me.

 

I felt mildly uncomfortable in the Chinese dance - I'm no expert and not up to date, but I'd got the impression that the pigtails on the men wasn't the preferred thing these days (in addition to other things). It was the dance in this production most capable of offending people of that nationality or heritage.

 

I think I get what you mean with Natascha Mair, her dancing was lovely, but the opening section didn't quite do it for me - though I'm happy to excuse that as it really not being the way to open the ballet!

[jmhopton]

I quite enjoyed the ENB version though not as much as BRB or RB versions. I watched it with my husband and thought the drawing/slightly animated introduction was a good idea to explain the plot and the settings. However, I realised fairly early on I'm not a fan of Wayne Eagling's choreography (in this version anyway). I suppose I'm spoiled by the Peter Wright versions but thought this an ideal Christmas to experience some different Nutcrackers and compare them with the ones I'm familiar with. After two minutes of actual dancing I was missing the Peter Wright choreography. However, I thought don't be ridiculous; it's far too early to criticise, only for my husband to articulate my thoughts about a minute later! Also I didn't like the Nutcracker not becoming a real person at the end of the mouse/rat fight; he kept his mask on for several minutes before going off stage and re-emerging a real person. Then later on in the second act he had his mask on again. I'm sure there's a good reason for it but I thought if I'm confused and I've seen dozens of Nutcrackers, will a small child understand what's going on? The dancing was wonderful and I loved the waltz of the Flowers, especially having been deprived of it in the BRB version. Did all three versions leave out the mirlitons? Is it such a tactile dance? Anyway, gorgeous dancing but I don't know if I'd pay to see it at the Coliseum, especially if the BRB or RB version are on offer.

[Sim]

The RB kept the Mirlitons but got rid of the Spanish and Arabian dances.  They also kept the Waltz of the Flowers but altered the choreography so there was no contact between the men and women.  It worked very well.  

[Janite]

13 hours ago, annekh510 said:

I felt mildly uncomfortable in the Chinese dance - I'm no expert and not up to date, but I'd got the impression that the pigtails on the men wasn't the preferred thing these days (in addition to other things). It was the dance in this production most capable of offending people of that nationality or heritage.

 

Like you I feel very uncomfortable with the Chinese dance done in pigtails. While the finger pointing has, thank goodness, been replaced in many productions the pigtails have remained. Phil Chan (Final Bow for Yellow Face) explained that the pigtail was a symbol of oppression similar to the yellow star the Jews had to wear. It would be such an easy fix to get another wig design. 

Here is the interview with him and it is worth a watch in my opinion. He is a thoughtful person.

(he talks about this around 6 mins) 

 

Edited December 29, 2020 by Janite

[Janite]

I have just been told the better word is 'queue' not 'pigtail', so much to learn.

Edited December 29, 2020 by Janite

[Janite]

Thank you to @annekh510   for reminding me of the issues of queues (pigtails). After writing my response (above) I thought I should write to the RB which I duly did. Below is email and the reply:

to the RB
I want to commend the RB for updating the Chinese Dance in Nutcracker, it does not make me feel uncomfortable any more. However, it was when listening to Phil Chan of Final Bow for Yellowface that I realised the pigtail is a symbol of oppression and as such offensive to people of Chinese descent and others. I would like to suggest a different wig design to do away with this and hopefully in showing consideration many more people will be attracted to this wonderful art form.

 

the Reply

Your message has been forwarded to the Ballet Company. Thank you for taking the time to write to us about the wigs in the Chinese Dance. The conversation about eliminating outdated stereotypes has been really meaningful and we too hope that we can make ballet relevant and attractive for diverse audiences and performers. The choreographic changes were made to avoid causing offence and this is another element for us to consider. I will take this forward to the artistic team for discussion and, in the meantime, thank you for taking the time to raise this point.

I hope you will have opportunity to enjoy The Nutcracker when it next returns.

Best wishes

Rachel


Rachel Hollings
Artistic Administrator
The Royal Ballet
Royal Opera House
Covent Garden, London WC2E 9DD

 

I also emailed Phil Chan (final bow for yellowface) with these emails, in case they have the opportunity to be in discussion on this topic. We had a very interesting conversation.

Edited January 11, 2021 by Janite