As we transition into winter, there’s a sense of holiday magic in the air. The need to give thanks seems in order, Christmas tunes begin to play and eggnog is suddenly on grocery lists. Preparing for the holidays lightens everyone’s mood—it’s a merry time of year. For some, this could be picking the perfect tree, purchasing presents for loved ones—and don’t forget those office parties at work. But, in the life of a ballerina, the holidays are a time to prepare for The Nutcracker.
Tchaikovsky’s timeless classic is a benchmark each year for any ballet company. For the Nashville Ballet, it’s something to be remembered. As envisioned by Artistic Director Paul Vasterling, the show adds a bit of historic Nashville to this favorite Christmas classic.
“The Nashville Nutcracker is different from the regular Nutcracker performances, but also the same,” explains Vasterling. “The traditional elements that exist in any Nutcracker are there: there’s a little girl, she goes to a Christmas party, she has a dream ... etc. But what we do differently is overlay Nashville’s history on top of that scenario dramatically.”
In the Nashville version, Clara’s character goes to the Tennessee Centennial Exhibition (World’s Fair) circa 1897. At the Fair, she comes in contact with people from all over the world and from these foreign encounters, spurs her dream that in turn takes us on the magical journey that is The Nutcracker.
“Visually, the way we delineate the real world from the dream world was inspired by the pictures from the original exhibition that were in sepia tones,” explains Vasterling. “Therefore, the ballet starts out in sepia and when Clara enters into the dream world, color begins to come to life.”
What exactly goes into the making of this production? There are 150 children (75 for each performance), the entire company (45 ballet dancers), two dance masters (Sharon Wood and Tim Yeager) and a very intricate vision from Paul Vasterling. Therefore, coordinating, teaching the company its steps and getting everyone where they need to be are vital in making this performance come to life.
Upon visiting Nashville Ballet, two dancers really stuck out to me while watching practice—Molly Sansone, from Charlotte, N.C., and Grace Rich, a native Nashvillian. To give me further perspective into the creation of a ballet, we discussed their daily routines and common misconceptions about the life of a company ballerina.
Preparation began in October with staging practices amongst their practices for the fall show, Giselle. However, the technical stuff has been in progress since August. Each day, they arrive at nine for practice. This usually lasts until 11 a.m., when they receive a 15-minute break. They continue to rehearse until 2 p.m. (lunch time). Afterwards, they keep working until around six. Needless to say, this is a full-time job—you can’t have this schedule and be a dilettante ...
The Nutcracker runs Dec. 11 through Dec. 20. For more information on purchasing tickets, visit nashvilleballet.com.