I'm just a big kid at heart. My default mode is holiday and thus Thanksgiving to New Years is my heaven. There is an indicator we have moved into the season that I spot every year.
On September 7th, thousands of little girls and little boys gather together to audition to be the Mice, the Candy Canes, and the Baby Bunnies for the 2023 version of the Nutcracker Suite. Then starting on December 9th, the curtain raises on this beloved ballet. For years and years, I would buy my tickets in the second balcony level on the left hand wing as close to the front as I could. I counted down the days prior to the event. When I was sitting in my chair and the opening music started all was right with the world.
The Sacramento production has always been one of the best for me. Ballet in Sacramento has always been strong, even though they went out of business twice. For a bit, I had season tickets. Sacramento's production was anchored by Barbara Crockett who helped found the company in 1954. She was a rock of precision. She was later followed by Ron Cunningham. Sacramento Ballet was considered one of the finest regional companies around. In 1986, they started to hire a resident company and became a totally professional company.
But even more so there has always been a theme of community. There are little pockets of ballet gatherings of little ones dreaming of being on the stage come December. Greta Gerwig, the dirctor of "Ladybird" and of "Barbie" made a holiday appearance on stage.
When Barbara Crockett and her husband first thought about producing the Nutcracker they had no idea what they could do about sets, which were tremendously expensive. Then Barbara heard the San Francisco Ballet was upgrading their Nutcracker scenery with all new sets. She made the call right away and was able to secure the old San Francisco Nutcracker sets and they were used for many years until finally replaced by new original sets.
I of course have my favorites that I can't wait to see. I love the Spanish dancers, the Arabic dancers, the Chinese dancers, the Russians, the Candy Canes. But who could miss Mother Ginger with the little ones hidden under her dress. When the ballet ended I knew Christmas had truly started.
One year my wife and I signed up and paid extra to take a tour of the site after the performance. After the production was over, we toured the stage and the dressing rooms behind the stage. We had a chance to talk to the company, who were all so energized and filled with sweetness. In the end we had the opportunity to talk to one of the primary dancers and ask questions. We learned about how difficult the dancing is on feet and saw worn out shoes and sprained ankles. We heard stories of extra work. But in the end we heard over and over again that there was no place else on the planet any of these people wanted to be. Another WOW moment!
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