By Steve Sucato

A proper The Nutcracker ballet is the best way to describe Cleveland Ballet’s new production that opened last Friday and runs through December 22 at Playhouse Square’s Connor Palace. With gorgeous sets, lush Victorian-era costumes, and marvelous classical dancing, the production took its place among Ohio’s best Nutcrackers, offering up a magical holiday treat for all ages. 

In a time when there are as many contemporary and alternative ballet versions of E. T. A. Hoffmann’s 1816 story, The Nutcracker and the Mouse King, out there as there are Santa Claus impersonators, Cleveland Ballet artistic director Timour Bourtasenkov’s new production for the company went old school. For the ballet purist, the dancing was classically driven, and the production’s scenes followed the order of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s original score. For the American traditionalist, Bourtasenkov adopted the structure and some characterizations from George Balanchine’s universally known production. And while Bourtasenkov’s production skewed traditional, it never felt timeworn.

Perhaps most striking was the production’s detailed and vibrantly colored stage settings. Recently purchased from Carolina Ballet, the opulent-looking stage curtains and backdrops, expertly lit by lighting designer Dennis Dugan, were delectable eye candy. None more so than the ballet’s opening party scene. A glass-domed parlor backdrop with the moon and stars shining above and snow-covered trees seen through several large picture windows helped convey the Stahlbaum Family’s wealth. 

Joyous, humorous, and well-crafted, the scene introduced us to the ballet’s protagonist, Clara, the young daughter of Doctor (Covington Pearson) and Mrs. Stahlbaum (Lauren Stenroos), danced by Academy of Cleveland Ballet’s Azariah Reznik. Clara, along with her mischievous little brother Fritz (Harper Jones), their wizardly godfather Drosselmeyer (Diego Castillo), and his apprentice (Sean Detwiller), were focal points of the action during the scene along with three life-size mechanical dolls brought by Drosselmeyer to entertain the guests. Of them, Emmanuel Martirosyan wowed as the Soldier Doll with his bravura jumps, leaps, and turns. 

Having spurred Clara’s imagination, the scene elegantly set up Clara’s magical adventure throughout the remainder of the 2-act ballet. 

Where the party scene was a gift that kept on giving with its well-crafted group dances and nostalgic Christmas warmth, the battle scene that followed was underwhelming. A nightmarish scene in Hoffmann’s tale showcasing a battle between an army of mice and rats led by their sinister king and one of toy soldiers led by the Nutcracker over Clara’s fate, Bourtasenkov’s battle scene proved a bit anemic, with the combating armies’ ranks a bit thin.

Transitioning from the battle to the first act’s closing Snow Scene, the Nutcracker is transformed into the flesh and blood Nutcracker Prince, portrayed by Detwiller, a promising young dancer from Center Stage Dance Studio in Northfield. The Nutcracker Prince and Clara dance together in celebration of their escape from the mouse army that takes them to a snowy landscape where a corps of snowflakes led by the Snow King and Queen, portrayed respectively by company principal artists Narek Martirosyan and Albina Ghazaryan, danced for her. The veteran couple performed solidly in Bourtasenkov’s technically challenging choreography for the roles. 

Clara’s well-known story continues in the ballet’s second act, where she, the Nutcracker Prince, and Drosselmeyer arrive in the Land of Sweets by boat. She and the Nutcracker Price recount their eventful journey to the Sugar Plum Fairy and her confectionary court. Clara is made an honored guest, and the court dances for her in celebration.  

Here, Bourtasenkov added small entourages of student background dancers to fill out the stage, beginning with the Spanish Chocolate dance that was performed with flair by lead dancers Nashializ Gomez Orengo and Emmanuel Martirosyan. 

Maligned these days for their cultural insensitivity, Bourtasenkov’s choreography for the ballet’s next two dances managed to avoid the offensive aspects of past renditions while retaining the spirit of each found in Tchaikovsky’s music. 

Sensual and mesmerizing, the Arabian Coffee dance featured a highly flexible Gabriela Checo in an adagio pas de deux solidly partnered by Johan Mancebo, and the Chinese Tea highlighted dancer Bruno Palheta Oliveira in an audience-pleasing athletic ribbon solo.

After the Marzipan dance and a Candy Cane dance (a.k.a. the Russian Dance or Trepak) that appeared recycled from last year’s production, the dance of Mother Ginger (Kevin Baker) and her brood of tumbling gingerbread children all but stole the show. The tight-knit, animated, and acrobatic group of eight pre-teen student dancers provided the ballet and the audience with a joyful shot of adrenaline that carried into the Flowers dance.

Led by Dew Drop Sydney Henson, the Flowers dance, performed to Tchikovsky’s “Waltz of the Flowers” music, was a buoyant and vibrant dance adroitly performed by the silky-smooth Henson and a corps of ten women. Its uplifting spirit was a wonderful setup for the Sugar Plum Fairy and her Cavalier’s Grand Pas de Deux to follow.

Performed by company star Svetlana Svinko and partner Lorenzo Mattia Pontiggia, the pas de deux and its solo variations were the most technical and physically demanding dancing in the production. Svinko was striking in it. Her polished dancing shone in passages of delicate footwork and rapid-fire turns. For his part, Pontiggia appeared a little out of his depth with the technical demands of the Cavalier role, but he gave a spirited effort and proved a steady partner to Svinko. 

Contrary to the playbill note about the ballet ending as many Nutcracker productions do with Clara being returned to the Stahlbaum home and waking up from an apparent dream, Bourtasenkov’s version, in keeping with the Balanchine’s, ended with the inhabitants of the Land of the Sweets waving farewell to Clara and the Nutcracker Prince as they sailed off to whatever was next for them.

While Cleveland Ballet’s new Nutcracker unwrapped like a shiny new toy, it wasn’t without a few scratches. Several of its backdrop curtains came up short in fitting the stage, the growing Christmas tree failed to reach its fullness, the aforementioned battle scene needed work, and the lead character of Drosselmeyer somewhat disappeared into the background. Nevertheless, the production captured the nostalgia and magic of a traditional The Nutcracker ballet that has been enchanting audiences of every age for decades and is worth experiencing again and again.

Cleveland Ballet’s The Nutcracker continues:
December 19 | 7:00 PM
December 20 | 7:00 PM
December 21 | 1:00 & 7:00 PM
December 22 | 1:00 PM

Presented by Roe Green & Roe Green Foundation and RPM
Connor Palace at Playhouse Square
1615 Euclid Ave, Cleveland, OH 44115

Tickets range from $30-$131 and can be purchased at playhousesquare.org or by calling (216) 241-6000. For more information, including casting visit cleveballet.org/the-nutcracker

Treat yourself to an unforgettable night by purchasing tickets for the Thursday, December 19, 7:00 PM performance, and upgrade your experience with premium tickets at a discounted rate! Tickets that are normally $88 are now just $54 using promo code BUMP.