125th Anniversary of Nutcracker, an example of what Europe & Russia together can give to World.

The Peace of God to all that belong to the light,
Dear Readers,

We are approaching gradually toward the 125th anniversary of the release of one of the greatest master works of the scenic
Arts of all epochs: The Nutcracker Ballet.

The Nutcracker Ballet was born in December 18th 1892 in St Petersburg, Russia, as a wonderful synthesis work among extremely talented artists like Marius Ivanovich Petipa, French born but Russian Choreographer, Piotr Ilich Tchaikovsky, Russian composser with French Ancestry, based on a script of adapted from The German E.T.A. Hoffmann's story The Nutcracker and the Mouse King.

Here the entire Marynsky Ballet current version.

www.youtube.com...

This version preserves the purity of the original choreography designed by Petipa the most it is possible with the knowledge we have of it. It includes all the repertoire of dances like the Russian, Arabic, Chinese, Spanish ones., etc.

Nutcracker has been a referent along the History of Ballet in which all the great copanies of he world soon or later arrive, it is a fantastic entertainment for all publics, of all ages, cultural backgrounds, social status, join old, mature and young public enthusiastically.

Along the evolution of this thead it is my intention to analyze the different stages that Nutcracker has shown along the almost 125 years that separate us from its creation.

Why is this so important? because it is going to explain to us at the same times the different substyles that Ballet has experienced along the last 3 centuries and at the same time it represents an incredible nice example of all what the remarkable creativity that may come from the cooperation among European and Russian cultures, what both worlds can achieve together when they touch each one the soul of the other and sublimize differences to synthetize something that is universal.


Here as a very interesting point of contrast, it is the official last version of the Soviet era by the other so famous Russian company, the Bolshoi of Moscow.

www.youtube.com...

Please enjoy them on this Christmas eve, Happy holidays for all, I hope the thread attract the attention of all the ballet lovers in ATS community.

Thanks,

The Angel of Lightness

a reply to: The angel of light

The Nutcracker is based on a tale that surely was popular among the peasants of Germany before Hoffmann put in writing first time, it contains a lot of magical elements of the folklore , legends and myths typically germanic.

Below is a synopsis based on the original 1892 libretto by Marius Petipa. The story varies from production to production, though most follow the basic outline. The names of the characters also vary. In the original E.T.A. Hoffmann story, the young heroine is called Marie Stahlbaum and Clara (Klärchen) is her doll's name. In the adaptation by Dumas on which Petipa based his libretto, her name is Marie Silberhaus. In still other productions, such as Baryshnikov's, Clara is Clara Stahlbaum rather than Clara Silberhaus.

Act I

Scene 1: The Stahlbaum Home

It is Christmas Eve. Family and friends have gathered in the parlor to decorate the beautiful Christmas tree in preparation for the party. Once the tree is finished, the children are sent for. They stand in awe of the tree sparkling with candles and decorations.

The party begins. A march is played. Presents are given out to the children. Suddenly, as the owl-topped grandmother clock strikes eight, a mysterious figure enters the room. It is Drosselmeyer, a local councilman, magician, and Clara's godfather. He is also a talented toymaker who has brought with him gifts for the children, including four lifelike dolls who dance to the delight of all. He then has them put away for safekeeping.

Clara and Fritz are sad to see the dolls being taken away, but Drosselmeyer has yet another toy for them: a wooden nutcracker carved in the shape of a little man, used for cracking nuts. The other children ignore it, but Clara immediately takes a liking to it. Fritz, however, purposely breaks it. Clara is heartbroken.

During the night, after everyone else has gone to bed, Clara returns to the parlor to check on her beloved nutcracker. As she reaches the little bed, the clock strikes midnight and she looks up to see Drosselmeyer perched atop it. Suddenly, mice begin to fill the room and the Christmas tree begins to grow to dizzying heights. The nutcracker also grows to life size. Clara finds herself in the midst of a battle between an army of gingerbread soldiers and the mice, led by their Tsar. They begin to eat the soldiers.

The nutcracker appears to lead the soldiers, who are joined by tin ones and dolls who serve as doctors to carry away the wounded. As the Mouse Tsar advances on the still-wounded nutcracker, Clara throws her slipper at him, distracting him long enough for the nutcracker to stab him.

Scene 2: A Pine Forest

The mice retreat and the nutcracker is transformed into a handsome Prince. He leads Clara through the moonlit night to a pine forest in which the snowflakes dance around them, beckoning them on to his kingdom as the first act ends.

Act II

Scene 1: The Land of Sweets

Clara and the Prince travel to the beautiful Land of Sweets, ruled by the Sugar Plum Fairy in his place until his return. He recounts for her how he had been saved from the Mouse King by Clara and had been transformed back into his own self.

In honor of the young heroine, a celebration of sweets from around the world is produced: chocolate from Spain, coffee from Arabia, tea from China, and candy canes from Russia all dance for their amusement; Danish shepherdesses perform on their flutes; Mother Ginger has her children, the Polichinelles, emerge from under her enormous hoop skirt to dance; a string of beautiful flowers perform a waltz. To conclude the night, the Sugar Plum Fairy and her Cavalier perform a dance.

A final waltz is performed by all the sweets, after which the Sugar Plum Fairy ushers Clara and the Prince down from their throne. He bows to her, she kisses Clara goodbye, and leads them to a reindeer drawn sleigh. It takes off as they wave goodbye to all the subjects who wave back.

In the original libretto, the ballet's apotheosis "represents a large beehive with flying bees, closely guarding their riches". Just like Swan Lake, there have been various alternative endings created in productions subsequent to the original.

Here the late 1980s version, Tchaikovsky and Petipa's Casse Noisette, choreography adapted and rearranged by the great Rudolph Nureyev, for the Ballet del'Opera de Paris Company under the direction of Michel Keval.

www.youtube.com...

Thanks,

The Angel of Lightness

I haven't been to bed yet and it turned into Christmas day already. I'll save this to watch and read tomorrow. Thanks!!! Merry Christmas!

S&F for friendship instead of political madness!

The Nutcracker: Soviet Animation Film (1973)

a reply to: The angel of light

I’m looking forward to follow your thread evolution, your intention sounds very interesting.

just comparing the two nutcracker versions you suggested is amazing, what a mirror they are of the times they were choreographed. it prompted me to dig further and sample more variations. now i am compelled to look for e.t.a. hoffman’s original story.

even the 2010 movie of the nutcracker is quite watchable!

a reply to: The angel of light

I hate The Nutcracker, and nutcrackers in general. they look creepy. I think the story is pretty creepy too. Why would a little girl want this ugly wooden statue with a big bushy beard to come to life.

Also, ballet itself is creepy, and teaches women to basically abuse themselves when they get to "toe." I knew a woman who was studying to be a professional ballet dancer, and then she had to quit in college because she overdeveloped her calves, and tore the sac that holds the calf muscles which never heals shut.
She told me her toenails used to turn purple, then black, and fall off from dancing on her toes, and her legs were in pain all the time. Her mentor would always tell her, "Suffer for your art!" over and over again.
My personal hypothesis is ballet is a dance of slaves created by the upper class to mock us commoners and make us dance a dance of pain for their personal sadistic sexual amusement.

a reply to: AzothPendragon

you are so right in so many points. and made me laugh.

and worst about ballet i find the male costumes

a reply to: AzothPendragon

Dear AzothPendragon,

Your hypothesis is wrong, since there is nothing of slavery in the birth of ballet is a dance created for the nobility, it has its roots in the Italian courts of the renaissance and it was refined in the Versaille court of Louis XIV.

It was brought from Italy probably under the influence of the great Italian composer Jean-Baptiste Lully born Giovanni Battista Lulli 28 November 1632 – 22 March 1687)

Louis XIV known in History as Le Roi Soleil was the first trully absolute monarch of France, he mark the end of the feudalism and the birth of the Absolutism. This means that the old feuldal nobility was removed from their original lands to live in the majestic court of Versaille.

Noblemen and ladies of course were not people accostume to work in anything so it was a challenge for the king to devise a kind of routine or protocol they can follow in a daily base, that was the reason for which ballet began, the steps were designed to ornate the different ceremonies in the Palace.

This is the reason for which all the steps of ballet are called with French names: retire, passe, releve, battement, grand battement, piroutte, tendu, fouttee , etc etc.

Here a nice French film that by sure will help you to see ballet from an entirely different perspective.

"Le Roi Danse" (The King Is Dancing), directed by Gérard Corbiau (the director of "Farinelli").


www.youtube.com...

The steps of ballet are possibly not easy to be learn and dominate, but each one is created to project a visual image of harmony and beauty from almost any angle that are seeing in the stage.

Nutcracker is a beautiful fairy tale, is a fantasy of childhood, it describes the magic that exist in the early years when the human beings are able to feel oneness with all, with all the universe, this occur before the adult life create the separation feelings with the reality that surround us.

Nutcraker existed long time, possibly centuries, as a popular christmas tale before to be written in Literature in Germany and translated to the language of Dance for the entertainment of the great Imperial theaters and the court of Russia.

Ballet transfer the expectator in to another dimension, it has a powerful hypnotic or trance effect in the public, the bodies that almost dont touch the floor literally make us dream in a world of ingravity, completely oniric. Of course, as any gymnastic discipline it requires technique, if the steps are not done correctly injuries can come, but that also happen in Olympic or rithmic gymnatics.

Thanks,

The Angel of Lightness

originally posted by: The angel of light
a reply to: AzothPendragon

Dear AzothPendragon,

Your hypothesis is wrong, since there is nothing of slavery in the birth of ballet is a dance created for the nobility, it has its roots in the Italian courts of the renaissance and it was refined in the Versaille court of Louis XIV.

It was brought from Italy probably under the influence of the great Italian composer Jean-Baptiste Lully born Giovanni Battista Lulli 28 November 1632 – 22 March 1687)

Louis XIV known in History as Le Roi Soleil was the first trully absolute monarch of France, he mark the end of the feudalism and the birth of the Absolutism. This means that the old feuldal nobility was removed from their original lands to live in the majestic court of Versaille.

Noblemen and ladies of course were not people accostume to work in anything so it was a challenge for the king to devise a kind of routine or protocol they can follow in a daily base, that was the reason for which ballet began, the steps were designed to ornate the different ceremonies in the Palace.

This is the reason for which all the steps of ballet are called with French names: retire, passe, releve, battement, grand battement, piroutte, tendu, fouttee , etc etc.

Here a nice French film that by sure will help you to see ballet from an entirely different perspective.

"Le Roi Danse" (The King Is Dancing), directed by Gérard Corbiau (the director of "Farinelli").


www.youtube.com...

The steps of ballet are possibly not easy to be learn and dominate, but each one is created to project a visual image of harmony and beauty from almost any angle that are seeing in the stage.

Nutcracker is a beautiful fairy tale, is a fantasy of childhood, it describes the magic that exist in the early years when the human beings are able to feel oneness with all, with all the universe, this occur before the adult life create the separation feelings with the reality that surround us.

Nutcraker existed long time, possibly centuries, as a popular christmas tale before to be written in Literature in Germany and translated to the language of Dance for the entertainment of the great Imperial theaters and the court of Russia.

Ballet transfer the expectator in to another dimension, it has a powerful hypnotic or trance effect in the public, the bodies that almost dont touch the floor literally make us dream in a world of ingravity, completely oniric. Of course, as any gymnastic discipline it requires technique, if the steps are not done correctly injuries can come, but that also happen in Olympic or rithmic gymnatics.

Thanks,

The Angel of Lightness

As far as my hypothesis, it seems to me to be able to prove it right or wrong. It just seems to me a dance that was created by the upper class for the commoners to do to entertain them. And, the dance is painful. Walking and standing on your toes is not natural. As far as I know, and I could be wrong, ballet dancers consider it "normal" for their toenails to turn black and fall off.
It seems to me another thing the upper classes created sadistically to amuse themselves with commoners' pain, such as gladiatorial combat and boxing.
I cannot prove my hypothesis, nor am I trying to. It's simply conclusions I came to from observation.

Every time I see a nutcracker doll, I feel disturbed. I think those man dolls are ugly and creepy, and I don't understand why people like them.

I find gymnastics to be really disturbing, also. I think it's really unhealthy, especially for females. It stunts their development. They get underdeveloped breasts, and start their periods late. There are all these moves that they are spreading their legs, and the whole world can see the shape of their labia. Yet, everyone pretends it's not sexual for some reason. I've seen lots of cameltoe and too much detail in man-bulges in ballet dancers.

A friend of mine in high school became a professional ballet dancer. He retired from it at age 30, because he said, it's hard on the body.

originally posted by: AzothPendragon
a reply to: The angel of light

I hate The Nutcracker, and nutcrackers in general. they look creepy. I think the story is pretty creepy too. Why would a little girl want this ugly wooden statue with a big bushy beard to come to life.

mhhh, as for this question i had to dig a bit deeper

to understand why a little girl would like such a toy we need to know that in olden times nutcrackers were a keepsake to bring good luck and to protect a family. they made excellent presents because nutcrackers represent power and strength and as such are symbols of fierce protectors baring its teeth to evil spirits

“Don’t be afraid, my beard is long, my head is large, my look is grim but that matters not. I won’t bite you. In spite of my big mouth and grim appearance, I look with my heart for your happiness.”
www.magicofnutcrackers.com...

also, in earlier times children used to love grandfathers with or without bushy beards

nowadays after much abuse and perverted ideas feelings and understandings are going through major changes. so it is no wonder that in newer versions of the theme the nutcracker is now a young prince cursed by evil

the battle between good and evil is not creepy but difficult

a reply to: lucia2389

I think you are quite right Dear Lucia2389, nutcracker just reflect the fight in between opposite forces that have modeled this world since its very beginning.

we can educate a child to believe that we live in a peaceful universe without any conflict, but soon or later he is going to find by himself that evil exists, that is pretty real, that is not going to surrender easy.

So the battle in between the two contraries is undeniable, and it is part of the maturation of a person to understand and accept it as part of the balance of the cosmos.

The more we put children in ignorance of this battle the more difficult will be for them to look for their own place in the world. Nothing is more dangerous in life than to ignore the existence of risks or dangers.

Thanks,

the Angel of Lightness

The Peace of God to all that belong to the Light,
Dear Readers

Nutkraker suite has had a so celebrated 125 anniversary around the world on this year from Christmas of 2017 to Christmas of 2018, performed in all the great Dance theaters from far east to Europe and the Americas .

It has been a year watching hundreds of magnificent versions of this so beautiful classic piece of ballet, whose choreographies can or not be inspired in the original one, or contain new innovations, but all of them performed with the beautifully magic music compossed by Piotr Ilich Tchaikovsky.

Let me share with you one of those new versions by the Moscow ballet, a company that is not as famous as the Bolshoi or Marynsky but has a lot of promising talents and great enthusiasm of their producers.

Pls check

Moscow Ballet, Nutkraker Suite Ballet

Thanks for your attention,

Happy Holidays

Merry Christmas

The Angel of Lightness