Dec
There are three things that say Christmas has arrived in Birmingham: The Frankfurt Market, the amazing Christmas tree by St Martin’ Church Bullring and The Nutcracker Ballet.
And today, I finally got to see The Nutcracker at the Hippodrome in its full festive glory. The Birmingham Royal Ballet’s spectacular production of the fairy tale classic pulls out all the stops to make it a must-see production.
A favourite for all the family, this classic fairytale tells the story of Clara who receives a beautiful wooden Nutcracker doll from the eccentric magician Drosselmeyer at a Christmas Eve party and is immediately enchanted. That night Clara sneaks downstairs at midnight to play with her new Nutcracker doll, and to her amazement the Christmas tree starts growing, she starts shrinking and she is swept up in a fantasy of toy soldiers, giant rats, snow fairies, magic and mystery.
The enchanting story of Clara’s adventures with her Nutcracker doll, Rat King and the Sugar Plum Fairy is an exquisite seasonal feast. Beautiful costumes, a stunning set and a joyful ballet performance are only surpassed by Tchaikovsky’s best-loved ballet score
My favourite part is when Clara saves her beloved Nutcracker from the King of the Rats, and is whisked away to the enchanted Land of Snow and dances the night away in her Prince’s arms, meeting a host of strange and exotic characters before she is finally transformed into a beautiful ballerina. The exquisite Sugar Plum Fairy performs a splendid solo in the snow.
Adults and children will certainly get swept up in the excitement of Christmas after seeing one of the most famous classical ballets of all time. And it will be of little surprise that young girls will want to be beautiful ballerinas after seeing this. It really is a Christmas marvel.
Words by Anita Champaneri
BIRMINGHAM HIPPODROME PERFORMANCES:
FRIDAY 25 NOVEMBER – SUNDAY 11 DECEMBER 2011
Birmingham Hippodrome Ticket Office: 0844 338 5000 or www.birminghamhippodrome.com
