The indefatigable Nutcracker finally met its match.
Ever since the Russian import first found an American beachhead in San Francisco in the waning months of World War II nothing has been able to halt the ballet’s inexorable march across the U.S. holiday landscape. From rural hamlets to the most sophisticated cities, “The Nutcracker” swept away all resistance with a phalanx of Mouse Soldiers and a rear guard of Sugar Plum Fairies.
The triumph seemed permanent and irreversible, at least until the annus horribilis of 2020, when the nation’s “Nutcrackers” were consigned to the barracks, like just about every other communal holiday tradition shuttered by COVID-19.
Sure, some ballet companies offered online productions. But as the father of a daughter who owned the role of the naughty gingersnap I can attest that at least half the magic of “The Nutcracker” takes place in the audience, where kids dressed up for the occasion experience their first ballet, watching their costumed peers in the production.
In retrospect San Francisco Ballet’s 2019 diamond jubilee production would have been hard to top, so perhaps a year off did the old utensil some good. In 2021, feeling jaded about the ballet isn’t an option. There’s still a ways to go before gathering together indoors for hours at a time feels normal, but the return of “The Nutcracker” in all its different iterations marks a welcome revival of a seasonal tradition.
Here’s a roundup of some of the live productions returning to the stage this year.
San Francisco Ballet
Featuring Tchaikovsky’s spritely score and E. T. A. Hoffmann’s fantastical narrative (via Alexandre Dumas’s adaptation), “The Nutcracker” made its evening-length American debut when San Francisco Ballet presented the work in the winter of 1944 at the War Memorial Opera House. Helgi Tomasson’s ravishing interpretation of the ballet, which premiered in 2004, exemplifies the “The Nutcracker’s” pliability as a holiday vehicle.
Using Tchaikovsky’s complete, unadulterated score in the sequence intended by the composer, Tomasson transported “The Nutcracker,” from late 18th-century Europe to a Pacific Heights mansion in 1915. The setting and date provide the ideal background for the tale, as the Bay Area was abuzz with the Panama-Pacific International Exposition (which provides the inspiration for the second act dance travelogue).
Details: Dec. 10-30; War Memorial Opera House, San Francisco; $19-$449; 415-865-2000, www.sfballet.org.
San Jose Dance Theatre
The South Bay ballet company has been presenting “The Nutcracker” since the Beatles spearheaded the British Invasion. Choreographed by company artistic director Linda Hurkmans, the company’s 56th “Nutcracker” features the professional company, the school’s youth ensemble, and the Cambrian Symphony conducted by Scott Krijnen. (An abbreviated production designed for young children, “Once Upon a Nutcracker,” will also be presented.)
Details: Main production Dec. 10-12 and 17-19 ($20-$95); “Once Upon a Nutcracker” 10:30-11:30 a.m. Dec. 17 ($11-$20); all performances at San Jose Center for the Performing Arts; 408-286-9905, www.sjdt.org.
Oakland Ballet Company
Graham Lustig premiered his “Nutcracker” with New Jersey’s American Repertory Ballet in 2000, but his shiny production fits snuggly amidst the Paramount Theatre’s resplendent Art Deco finery. Set in early 20th-century Vienna, the ballet features Lawrence Chen as the Nutcracker Prince and Paunika Jones, a former principal ballerina with Dance Theater of Harlem, as Marie (the name of Hoffmann’s original protagonist, changed in most productions to Clara). Several dozen young dancers play snowballs, mice, soldiers and candies. Artistic director and conductor of the Berklee Contemporary Symphony Orchestra, Julius P. Williams, conducts the Oakland Symphony alongside the Piedmont East Bay Children’s Choir.
Details: 1 and 5 p.m. Dec. 18, 1 p.m. Dec. 19; Paramount Theatre, Oakland; $24-$99. 800-745-3000, oaklandballet.org.
New Ballet
Presented in partnership with History San Jose, New Ballet’s “The San Jose Nutcracker” is set in 1905’s orchard-laden Santa Clara Valley. Brimming with Easter eggs referencing the region’s early role as a center of innovation, the production features the New Ballet Orchestra. The troupe, Hammer Theatre’s resident ballet company, which was founded in 2016 by choreographer and teacher Dalia Rawson, also presents an abbreviated one-act for young dance fans.
Details: Main production 2 p.m. Dec. 18-19, 21-22 ($25-$95); “My Very First Nutcracker” 11 a.m. Dec. 18-19, 21-22 ($17-$60); all performances at California Theatre, San Jose; 408-792-4111, www.newballet.com.
Mark Foehringer Dance Project|SF
“Mark Foehringer’s Nutcracker Sweets,” a 50-minute version of “The Nutcracker,” is designed for families with young children. Performed by a nine-piece chamber orchestra conducted by Keisuke Nakagoshi, the Tchaikovsky score was re-orchestrated for the production by Oakland Symphony’s late maestro Michael Morgan. With design by Peter Crompton, costumes by Richard Battle, and production and projection design by Frédéric O. Boulay, the confectionary “Nutcracker Sweets” is a treat for kids and adults.
Details: December 4-19; Cowell Theater, Fort Mason Center for Arts & Culture, San Francisco; $22.50-$44.50; 415-345-7575, mfdpsf.org.
Valley Dance Theatre
One of the Bay Area’s longest-running and most popular renditions of the holiday staple returns to mark its 40th anniversary, a milestone that was postponed last year due to the pandemic. The opulent, full-length production, known for its rich sets and costumes, is accompanied as always by the Valley Dance Theatre Pit Orchestra.
Details: Eight performances, available both evening and matinee, Dec. 11-18; Bankhead Theater, Livermore; $25-$45; 925-373-6800, https://ift.tt/3D9c9t0.
Contact Andrew Gilbert at jazzscribe@aol.com.
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