Liam Green as Uncle Drosselmeyer with Carina Roberts as Clara in The Nutcracker. Photo by Sergey Pevnev.
It was a balmy night for the opening of the perennial Christmas favourite, The Nutcracker, at Perth’s grand old Edwardian masterpiece, His Majesty’s theatre. Excitement spiked as snowflakes fluttered down upon the elegant arrivals. They included children, excited yet well-behaved, with parents, grandparents and friends and they were, no doubt, wishing they could be up there on stage with the twenty plus young dancers who helped bring credit to this wonderful performance.
What better way to be exposed to the writing talent of two great authors, E.T.A. Hoffmann who wrote the original story and Alexandre Dumas who adapted it for the ballet as well as the musical genius of composer, Pyotr Ilich Tchaikovsky.
As the first strands of that unforgettable music opened the winter scene, you were immediately transported back to those 19th century days, whether you were seeing The Nutcracker for the first time or the fiftieth, anywhere in the world.
Such an occasion is always enhanced by the addition of a live orchestra and the West Australian Philharmonic was at one with conductor, Myron Romanul, who will follow the Perth performances by conducting The Nutcracker in Germany.
If the snowflakes dropped silently to the ground outside the theatre, on stage the lead ballerinas, Carina Roberts as Clara and Claire Voss as the Snow Queen and Sugar Plum Fairy were as light on their feet as fairy floss. But it was their excellent timing and use of their personalities that had the audience spellbound, particularly in the duets between the adoring Clara, keen to mimic, and the mature Snow Queen.
Nikki Blain, Stefano Russiello and Chihiro Nomura as Mirlitons in The Nutcracker. Photo by Sergey Pevnev.
Liam Green, as Uncle Drosselmeyer, the toymaker, made a dramatic entrance to the Christmas party in a cloak of brilliant colours which he used to great effect, encompassing the stage with expansive movements and mischievous looks. His deft use of a magic wand brought gasps from the audience and initiated an interaction with Clara’s brother, Fritz, played by Matthew Edmondson.
What followed were cameo moments where Drosselmeyer delivered toys to the children, a toy trumpet to Fritz and the Nutcracker to Clara, causing friction between the two. The Nutcracker is broken and quickly repaired but I felt these moments might have benefitted by more interaction time for the children receiving their presents, being consoled by their parents and performing their solos. Perhaps a few minutes could have been stolen from the waltzing which, though dazzling, would not have suffered for it.
A measure of time was also unclear, perhaps only to me, by the fact that Clara did not descend stairs, just before midnight, to retrieve her Nutcracker.
All forgiven, however, as Drosselmeyer, with a flourish, gradually expanded the Christmas tree to a giant height and turned the Nutcracker into a gallant soldier, Matthew Lehman, in command of his resplendent army and poised to fight the Mouse King and his followers. As he emerges from the fray victorious, his mask is removed to reveal him as the handsome prince to dance a romantic pas de deux with Clara. Dancers, as snowflakes, transform the scene to a misty wonderland to welcome the Snow Queen. Her diaphanous white and silver costume whirls gently around Voss’s slender body as she slowly performs her exquisite solo. In this scene and in those before and after, the audience has shown its appreciation of the vast array of props and costumes designed by the internationally famous team of Charles Cusick Smith and Phil R. Daniels, even a sleigh to whisk Clara and her prince away to the Land of Sweets and a second act full of multicultural surprises. From vibrant Spanish music, sensual Arabian contortions, Russian Candy Cane to Chinese tea, dancers excelled in their brief appearances and the corps de ballet flower costumes were a credit to members of the wardrobe department who had hand-sewn over two thousand individual petals and 50,000 glitter dots.
But it is the execution of the Sugarplum Fairy dance to the gentle sounds of celesta and clarinet that is always the pièce de résistance. Voss performed it to perfection followed by a breathtaking pas de deux with Lehmann.
Perfection is sometimes far more difficult in small slow movements than it is in large dramatic ones and it was a pleasure to watch the skilful flexibility and control of both Roberts and Voss.
Apart from an apprehensive moment when Liam Green’s cloak briefly caught the edge of a table, this opening night was a triumph and five curtain calls weren’t nearly enough.
4 ★★★★
The Nutcracker
West Australian Ballet
Artistic Director: Aurélien Scannella
Choreography: Jayne Smeulders; Sandy Delasalle; Aurélion Scannella
Sets & Costumes: Phil R. Daniels & Charles Cusick Smith
Lighting: Jon Buswell
West Australian Philharmonic Orchestra
Conductor: Myron Romanul
Musical Arrangement: Michael Brett
16 November – 9 December, 2018
His Majesty’s theatre, Perth, WA
