The Bolshoi's "Nutcracker"
By Howard Kaplan
THE GEORGETOWNER
22.12.2002

Like the fabled Christmas tree that grows during The Nutcracker to record heights, the Bolshoi production of The Nutcracker took a while to grow into something memorable.

The production, from 1966, by choreographer Yuri Grigorovich (then artistic director of the Bolshoi) seemed dated in parts, as if it had been taken off a forgotten shelf but not quite dusted off. It was wooden where it should have been pliant, and stodgy when it should have been captivating.

Perhaps I've been spoiled by George Balanchine's Nutcracker for New York City Ballet, which never loses sight of the magic and the mystery. Balanchine and Tchaikovsky how can you lose? Balanchine's production is always fresh and stays with you long after you leave the theater. Despite the snow and the glitter, the Bolshoi's production of The Nutcracker could have used a bit more sparkle.

The ballet was deliberately stripped of the charms that make it a wonderful ballet for children. That was Grigorovich's vision, which perhaps works better as an idea, than as a fleshed-out ballet. It's Christmas Eve in the home of Dr. Stahlbaum, his wife, and their children, Marie and Fritz.

Soon guests arrive, and the children are playing party games. In this production, the boys were all danced by young women, whose mature curves were not always hidden beneath their short waistcoats. Was it me, or did Fritz look suspiciously like Hillary Clinton? And I thought Chelsea was the dancer in the family. Hmmmmm......

The ballet finally gets interesting with the introduction of Herr Drosselmeyer, the mysterious party guest who brings toys for the children, especially a large nutcracker for Marie. As danced by Vladimir Moiseev, you could see why the children would fall under his spell. His sharp dancing and stage manner showed what had been missing previously in this production. Now, things were starting to get interesting. This act ends with Marie in the land of the snowflakes which had an unfortunate, Soviet, Sputnick-era feel to it. The women in the Kingdom of Snow came across as a bit stilted, as if they are part of a military drill. And unfortunately, the branches they carried with two pieces of cotton-snow attached to the tips, looked as if they were each about to roast marshmallows at a campfire.

The second act, traditionally set in the land of sweets (Candy Canes, Marzipan, etc.) has been replaced by dancers doing variations that represent different countries. Among the most successful, Yulia Chicheva and Denis Medvedev as the Chinese pair, and Anna Leonova and Gennady Yanin as the Russian couple.

If there were any real presents under this Christmas tree it was the dancing by Nikolai Tsiskaridze as the Nutcracker Prince and to a lesser extent, Marianna Ryzhina as Marie. His Nutcracker Prince was at turns poetic and dazzling, technically sharp, with a strong stage presence and a blizzard of a smile.