The Nutcracker

Let me just say this right up front: I am not all that knowledgeable about ballet, although I have now seen this particular one twice. The first time was at the Lincoln Center in 2008. This time, I saw it at the theater at  Raritan Valley Community College (RVCC) in Branchburg, New Jersey.

In the Nutcracker, the story begins with a big party at the palace, where the adults first dance around before the children are given their gifts.

One girl receives the gift of the Nutcracker, a toy soldier. But a jealous little boy filled with malice breaks this toy, and the girl is distraught.

That night, some little mice come to life, behind their leader, the Rat King. The Nutcracker comes back to life, and fights the Rat King. The Little girl throws her slipped at the Rat King, knocking him out (it was the first of two knockouts that I would witness this weekend, but was somehow a little less dramatic than how Manny Pacquiao got knocked out against Marquez).

The Rat King is now defeated, and their is more dancing for celebration.

The background designs were very beautiful. It really looked like what you would imagine the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg to look like. There was a Christmas tree as well that looked real, and they made it grow in size later, as the play went on. It was quite impressive!

Also, the outfits were very beautiful, and my girlfriend definitely enjoyed them very much, pointing out how pretty they were.

There were two showings for Saturday, December 8, and we went to the early showing at 3:00pm. The venue itself is nice and conveniently located right off of Route 28, on the campus of the community college. The theater was a bit smaller than expected, and a bit too warm, I think. A few people were mentioning how warm it was, although the packed audience might have had something to do with that, as well.

The acrobatics of the dancers was pretty amazing, and many of them displayed a tremendous level of grace and elegance.

This was the twelfth consecutive year that the Moscow Ballet touring company has offered this show, and it has come to Raritan Valley before. If you are in to ballet, or have always wanted to see "The Nutcracker", I would recommend trying to see it if it comes around again next year!