The Nutcracker

Opening night was the 118^th performance of Peter Wright’s The Nutcracker and there really is nothing new here. Having said that, it’s a must see whenever it comes to town because The Nutcracker is a delightful narrative ballet telling the story of a young ballet students, Clara and her Christmas eve journey to wonderous lands where she will eventually be transformed into the Sugar Plum Fairy.

Senior Artist Benedicte Bemet is the perfect casting for Clara. Her angelic face conveys the absolute innocence of the character and so when she finds herself under the Christmas tree beset with rats or floating through the clouds on the back of a white bird. Bemet has a big task in The Nutcracker. She is barely off stage for the entire production and is utterly engaging the whole time. Her interactions with Principal Andrew Killian as the Drosselmeyer, the magician, further emphasizes Bemet’s action ability.  Killian doesn’t do an awful lot of dancing in this production, which is a shame for his fans. He does do some pretty impressive cape work to help create his character.

Adam Bull was enthralling as the Prince. In pas de deux or in solo, the heights Bull can reach are stunning.  Amber Scott returns as the Sugar Plum Fairy and handles the role with aplomb. Special mentions should be made of Nicola Curry as the ethereal Snow Fairy (and yes it snows on stage) and Shaun Andrews as the Jack-in-the-Box who could not have shown more bounce if his legs were actually springs. 

The hero of this piece is Tchaikovsky’s score and the delightful set design by Jon Macfarlane. There are some real problems with the ballet itself and some of the dancers. It is really unforgivable for the Corp to not be able to dance in unison. Although the female cast showed their skills in the Waltz of the Flowers, the male cast were sloppy and not on the beat. This would not be tolerated at any ballet school across the country so I honestly can never understand how the Corp gets away with it.  In addition, it’s definitely time that The Nutcracker gets a cultural diversity update, particularly in costume and makeup.  This is particularly striking when it comes to the Chinese Dance, who come complete with moustaches and fingers in the air. It’s a striking stereotype but not in a good way. It’s time that The Australian Ballet performed some updates on the characters and spent a lot more time drilling the Corp. 

Even with those things in mind The Nutcracker is a well-choreographed, beautifully staged and mostly exceptionally danced ballet, and it’s actually suitable for children. You’ll walk away feeling well entertained.

L.B. Bermingham

Photographer: Jeff Busby