The Nutcracker was truly a family affair this year for Principal Dancer Xiao Nan Yu (Snow Queen) and Corps de Ballet Member and Elizabeth Marrable (Snow Maiden). Nan’s daughter Ava, age 5, and Elizabeth’s sister Michaela, age 7, are both students at Canada’s National Ballet School and perform the role of the Lambs in The Nutcracker.

We asked each of them to describe this very special season of The Nutcracker:

Nan: This is definitely an extraordinary Nutcracker season for me because my 5 year old daughter Ava and I are performing onstage together. It is easy pick out the ballet gene in her; she feels most comfortable onstage with a large audience watching. It is absolutely priceless to share such a wonderful experience with my daughter.

Ava: I enjoy dancing onstage with Mommy. I like the Lamb costume a lot and I like the part when the wolf comes out and we are all scared and gallop around.

Elizabeth: When I found out that my little sister Michaela would be performing as a Lamb in The Nutcracker, I was overjoyed and couldn’t wait to have her around backstage and onstage with me. Having my sister in The Nutcracker makes this ballet even more magical for me, which I didn’t believe was possible.

Michaela:

[Photo credits: Top, Xiao Nan Yu and her daughter Ava. Photo by Catherine Chang. Above, Elizabeth Marrable and her sister Michaela. Photo by Wendy Liebner.]

When First Soloist Etienne Lavigne asked me how I would feel about dancing in The Oakville School of Dance’s The Nutcracker, I immediately jumped at the opportunity. For an Apprentice, any chance to perform is especially exciting because our dance careers are just beginning. Little did I know that I would find myself in the middle of 34 performances, performing five different roles over a span of six weeks. Although the entire experience has been a little hectic, it has been truly rewarding as well. At the start of my run of The Oakville School of Dance’s The Nutcracker, I had the chance to perform the Snow pas de deux as the Snow King. Along with Madeleine and Cristina (the Snow Queens) I only rehearsed for about five hours in total. The choreography included a lot of partnered pirouettes, which took some getting used to, but the girls I danced with were incredibly supportive. After our two weekends of performances, I moved from the Oakville Centre for the Performing Arts to the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, where I am now performing a variety of roles in the National Ballet’s The Nutcracker: Uncle, Horse, Cannon Doll and Waiter.

These roles involve more dancing and a lot of mustache-wearing, which I definitely consider a plus. I have traded in my white tights and tunic for leather boots and poufy pants. The rehearsal process for the National Ballet’s The Nutcracker was quite different in that we had three weeks to learn all of the choreography and polish it up for the stage. Learning four different parts in such a short period of time was a little crazy, but I managed to stay alive. I found it so interesting to make the transition from The Oakville School of Dance’s more traditional version to the National Ballet’s version with a bear on roller-blades and little chefs chasing chickens. I must say that after performing in The Nutcracker in these two completely different settings, I have not only gained a new appreciation for the show but I have realized its power to unite both dancers and audiences through the magic of the holiday spirit.

Photos: [Top, Dylan with Cristina Marquez. Centre, with Cristina Marquez and Emma of The Oakville School of Dance. Above, students of The Oakville School of Dance. Photos by David Hou and Avinoam Silverman.]

Last week, Artistic Director Karen Kain participated in a lively discussion with Washington Post critic Sarah Kaufman about The Nutcracker on CBC Radio’s Q, hosted by Jian Ghomeshi. Listen to the full podcast here.

New York Times blogger David Itzkoff continued the discussion in his recent New York Times Arts Beat blog writing “For some dance critics, this proliferation of Sugar Plum Fairies, Mouse Kings and Gnomes is awakening their inner Scrooges.”

To read full comments and join in the discussion, visit CBC’s online article here.

[Photos: Top, Artists of the Ballet in The Nutcracker. Photo by Bruce Zinger. Above, Karen Kain. Photo by Sian Richards.]

The horse in The Nutcracker is always a crowd-pleaser, especially with the younger members of the audience. It requires two male dancers - one in the front and one in the back. With levers and pulleys, the front dancer controls the ears, eyes and mouth of the horse as well as the movement of the head. The back dancer controls the movement of the tail. There are certain moments onstage where the horse is especially active with these movements, such as when pulling the sleigh onstage, the ears of the horse must be pulled back. This is something an actual horse would do when pulling a sleigh or carriage, and makes the horse appear as realistic as possible. In fact, most people at first glance think the horse to be real.

Getting into the horse costume for the first time can be an awkward experience, but we have to get used to it quickly. We wear tights made from the same fabric as the body of the horse, a pair of large clunky shoes resembling hoofs and some hairy calf wraps that look like fetlocks, (the patch of hair above the horse’s hoof). Once in the costume, we are guided to stage left where the front of the horse is attached to a sleigh. As the horse enters the stage, the front dancer has to lean forward and pull the heavy sleigh behind him. We each have only a small mesh window to peer out of the costume.

As the horse exits the stage, the crew unhooks the sleigh and for a few brief moments while the bears dance onstage, we get to sit waiting for the next entrance. The second and final entrance of the horse is our time to shine, because now the horse must dance. This dance is simple when out of the costume but once we are suited up and there are two separate bodies in one horse costume, it’s a whole different kind of dance. For example, there are moments where the back dancer must lift the front dancer in the air for it to look like the horse is kicking. The front dancer is responsible for the spacing of the horse and the back dancer must remain the same distance from the front at all times. This all must be accomplished while making sure we don’t run over Uncle Nikolai or kick him.

With a final leap, the horse runs offstage and we immediately get out of costume and prepare for our next roles in the performance.

[Photos: Top, Piotr Stanczyk and Artists of The Ballet in The Nutcracker. Photo by Bruce Singer. Centre and above, Brendan Saye and Thomas Snee. Photos by Sian Richards.]

The 2009/10 season is off to a terrific start. The Fall Season garnered rave reviews and the audience enthusiastically embraced both The Sleeping Beauty and the mixed programme, The Four Temperaments & Watch her & Glass Pieces.

The Sleeping Beauty reviews:

“a stunning success… this truly classical ballet is a triumph for the company.” – The Globe and Mail

“****/4 The Sleeping Beauty awakens new season… It takes a well-bred company to pull it off, which happily the National Ballet proves itself to be.” – Toronto Star

“*****/5 The Sleeping Beauty an eye-opener… the magic at the heart of the story [is] awakened with a kiss.” – Toronto Sun

“The Sleeping Beauty demands that dancers possess the strength, stamina, and speed of Olympic athletes. In last Friday’s performance, the National Ballet of Canada proved that they’re medal-worthy.”
– The National Post

“inspires (and actually deserves) platitudes like “feast for the eyes.”…. an achievement by the whole company” - EYE Weekly

The world premiere of Watch her by Canadian Choreographer Aszure Barton was presented with George Balanchine’s The Four Temperaments and Jerome Robbins’ Glass Pieces.

Mixed Programme reviews:

“This powerful piece… will continue to reveal its riches for years to come. Buy a ticket!” – The Globe and Mail

“****/4 When both [dancing and choreography] are impassioned, inventive and compelling it makes for an exhilarating experience. Such is what the National Ballet of Canada has to offer in a thrilling triple bill that opened last night at the Four Seasons Centre… Barton’s ballet crackles!” – Toronto Star

“*****/5 an evening to remember …. proving in the process that when it comes to the National Ballet of Canada, too much of a good thing is a very good thing indeed.” - Toronto Sun

“Barton has created a riveting tension” - EYE Weekly

Don’t miss “the best Nutcracker on the planet” at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, December 12, 2009 – January 3, 2010. Tickets are selling fast! Some performances already sold out.

[Photo credits: Top, Artists of the Ballet in The Sleeping Beauty. Second: Heather Ogden with Artists of the Ballet in The Sleeping Beauty. Photos by Aleksandar Antonijevic. Third and Fourth, Bridgett Zehr with Artists of the Ballet in Watch her. Third photo by Cylla von Tiedemann. Fourth photo by Aleksandar Antonijevic.]