March of the Nutcracker

Greetings everyone to a late night version of The Magical Mystery Blog.

Tonight begins one of my favorite holiday traditions: Ovation’s Battle of The Nutcrackers.  At this time of the year, the Ovation channel features different adaptations of the classic ballet, The Nutcracker.  The first Nutcracker to kick off this annual televised event is the addictive and unusual Mariinsky version of The Nutcracker. In this adaptation, Clara is the neglected daughter of the family who’s always overshadowed by her brother, Fritz. With shadowy sets throughout the play and distinctive choreography, this is a Nutcracker unlike any other. However, all nutcrackers don’t follow the same production as the Mariinsky’s.

Below are a few facts about The Nutcracker you may not know.

• Not only are there various ballet productions but there are many movie and book adaptations as well.  A famous movie version of The Nutcracker is George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker which is currently playing at the Philadelphia Kimmel Center (aka Academy of Music).

• One of the most common tunes you hear around this time of the year is from The Nutcracker. It is called the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy and is often used in commercials. Other ads tend to spring for another piece from the ballet entitled, Waltz of the Flowers.

• The Nutcracker from the ballet originated from the story The Nutcracker and the Mouse King by ETA Hoffman.

• When The Nutcracker was first ever performed in 1892 it was considered a failure. Tchaikovsky died less than a year later, not knowing the future of his production.

• As mentioned, there are different adaptations of The Nutcracker. The Mariinsky theater takes a more somber yet strange take on the classic. Here the mice are in cohorts with Drosselmeyer, the Nutcracker and Clara collapse in a snowstorm in a graveyard, and the Nutcracker and Clara fly in a shoe to a sweet shop. The Royal Albert Hall sticks true to the original story with cheerful sets, a fantastic transformation scene, and even takes ideas from what inspired Tchaikovsky to create this masterpiece. The Bolshoi is lavish, much like the Mariinsky, but has a brighter theme, and even the Nutcracker supposedly marries Clara towards the end of the production.

What’s your favorite holiday tradition? Feel free to leave your answers below and as always, feedback and followers are welcomed.