Friday, November 16, 2007
News / theater / Dance / Family Let’s get this season started
Posted by David Lee Simmons on Fri, Nov 16, 2007 at 10:11 PM
(photo courtesy Ballethnic)
Where will you be this weekend? It’s a valid question. It’s fall, the weather’s crisp, and there’s like a ton of stuff to do. Me? I’m tired of the same old Nutcracker, so (at the goading, er, urging of my wife), I figured it’s time to check out Ballethnic’s Urban Nutcracker, which by all accounts is one of the signature events of the holiday season (which is very much upon us).
This is Ballethnic’s 18th season performing the “Nutcracker with soul,†adapted from Tchaikovsky’s classic ballet by Ballethnic co-founder/co-artistic director Waverly Lucas. The production promises a heady mix of classic ballet, jazz and ethnic dance. According to a press release, this year the show will feature students from the Ballethnic Youth Ensemble along with seniors from the H.J.C. Bowden Senior Center in East Point. The setting for the production moves to 1940s-era Sweet Auburn Avenue.
Here’s the weekend schedule: Friday, Nov. 16 (tonight, opening night), 8 p.m.; Saturday, Nov. 17 (public performance), 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.; and Sunday, Nov. 18 (matinee performance), 2 p.m. Be wary of the traffic around the Ferst Center due to the Georgia Tech game that same Saturday afternoon.
Tickets are $39 general admission, $29 for senior citizens, students, children and groups of 10 or more. Call the Ferst Center Box Office at 404-894-9600 or visit www.ferstcenter.org.
Would love some thoughts on it beforehand.
Comments (2)
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I LOVE LOVE LOVE this show. There are so few African American dance companies that make something uniquely OURS rather than just having black people to the same thing, Ballethnic created something that speaks to a much larger audience. I loved it and it is a very special time in my family's holiday...Urban Nutcracker is the beginning of our HOLIDAY!!!!!
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Thanks for the feedback, Chantal. My wife and I caught the final performance, the Sunday matinee. Not a huge crowd (which makes sense considering it was the fourth one), but still well attended. My initial vibe was very positive. I was most impressed with the ambition of trying to work with so many cast members -- especially that many KIDS! -- and the decision to truly make it more "urban" and also localized. I'm not sure that idea carries itself all the way through the production, but it's a great idea. I think the costume design was virtually flawless, and went a long way toward keeping up the theme. The patchwork style on the clowns in particular had a distinct African-American vibe to it. And the vibrant colors really popped, thanks partly to really sweet lighting design. I loved how the visiting families were all "color-coded" in greens and reds and a sophisticated black, etc. It really helped train the idea when the stage was so loaded down with characters. I thought the lead performances were a little uneven, though. No "bad," just a bit lacking. There were moments when the Snow Queen was spot on, others where she really didn't have much dynamic movement. Even more curious was what felt like a milking of the audience's applause -- it wasn't a show-stopping segment, so why make the audience try to feel like it. You could feel the applause drain with each bow. But overall the leads were solid, and the audience responded in kind.
