Nutcracker Ballet - Part 3 Waltz of the Snowflakes

This past Saturday I had the great fortune of seeing the Houston Ballet perform The Nutcracker. It was amazing! I wish they posted videos on youtube of their rendition of the ballet, I really liked the set, props, and most of all the choreography. My favorite was the Arabic dance, which I will post about later.

We last left off at the  house party where Clara and her family and friends were celebrating Christmas Eve. After the party ends and Clara goes to bed, she is suddenly awoken by a swarm of rats attacking the toy soldiers inside her house. Her nutcracker comes to the rescue, and at the end of the battle he turns into a price and whisks her away to another land.

As they travel to this new land, they meet the snow queen and her snowflakes, and together they perform a charming dance, set to beautiful music written by Tchaikovsky. In some versions, Clara and the nutcracker prince are the soloists, such as the video below. In the Houston Ballet version I saw on Saturday, the Snow queen performs as the soloist with the prince. Both are equally stunning!

The Nutcracker Ballet - Act I - Waltz of the Snowflakes
Composed by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)

Nutcracker Ballet - Part 2 March

Today we will continue with the wonderful ballet The Nutcracker.

In my previous post, we heard the overture, which can be thought of as the opening credits for a movie. Now, we will delve in to the Christmas party scene.

In the dance below, Clara's brother and a group of boys perform the soldier's march. Notice the steady beat, delightful rhythm, and the use of trumpets to create a scene as if real soldiers in red coats were marching through town.

The Nutcracker Suite - II. Danses  Caractéristiques- Marche

Composed by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)

Nutcracker Ballet - Part 1 Miniature Overture

Now the December is here, I can't wait to share some of my favorite ballet music, the Nutcracker!

The Nutcracker is a Christmas classic, telling the story of a young girl Clara who receives a toy nutcracker for a Christmas present. That night, she finds herself attacked by a swarm of rat soldiers, led by the rat king. Her nutcracker toy turns into a Prince and comes to her rescue. The pair then travel to a far away land ruled by the Sugar Plum fairy, who rejoices at the arrival of the Prince. The sweets from around the world then dance in celebration. Clara and the Prince ride off and she wakes up in the parlor of her house underneath the Christmas tree, holding her nutcracker toy.

The genius behind the Nutcracker suite is one of my favorite composers Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. He was a great Russian composer, who in addition to the Nutcracker, also composed for ballets such as Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, and Romeo and Juliet.

The ballet opens with the following miniature overture while the stage is slowly being set for the night of Christmas eve...

Enjoy!


The Nutcracker Suite - I. Miniature Overture - Composed by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)