First "Nutcracker" by the New York City Ballet
"At Christmas time," the legendary impresario Sol Hurok once said, "the whole country turns into one big 'Nutcracker.' And so it does. Not only is it rare to have a Christmas story as a libretto, the production provides students the opportunity to advance into roles as they grow and progress from being a mouse, or rabbit, into being a young guest at a Christmas Eve party, one of the two children of the household (Clara or Fritz), a warrior in the battle scene, an angel and perhaps eventually grow into the pre-professional roles by becoming a snowflake or flower. The progression has been in the dreams of hundreds of students.
NYCB's Adam Hendrickson as Drosselmeier Photo: Paul Kolnik
The libretto is based on one of E.T.A. Hoffman's tales, "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King," (1816) to music by Tchaikovsky. , until his illness compelled him give it to his assistant, Ivanov, to complete. Only Petipa’s pas de deux for the Sugar-Plum Fairy and her Cavalier remained at the opening in 1892 at the Maryinski Theater in St. Petersburg, with the legendary Olga Preobrajenska as the Sugar-Plum Fairy.
Because of its loose structure, the story has been adapted, shortened, re-choreographed and pummeled to the needs of every company that performs it except for the Act II pas de deux, which has been more or less accurately documented. Nonetheless, the pas de deux remains the high point of the ballet and is performed throughout the country by the local principals or by invited soloists. Artist representatives scramble to find any available Cavalier to book for the Christmas performances.
Outside Russia, the ballet first appeared in London in 1934; in a one-act version by Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo in the 1940s with adults as children; San Francisco Ballet in 1944; various European companies in the 1960s and ‘70s; and a Mikhail Baryshnikov version for American Ballet Theatre in 1976.
Balanchine, always sentimental about the ballets in which he appeared as a child in St. Petersburg, danced several roles in their Russian Nutcracker productions. He mounted the work for his concert-sized New York City Ballet of 22 girls and 11 boys, with an additional 39 children from the school, to open at the City Center on February 2, 1954. The battle scene between the Mouse King and the Nutcracker, however, was choreographed by Jerome Robbins. The set was created by Horace Armistead, lighting by Jean Rosenthal and costumes by Karinska.
Maria Tallchief, as the Sugar-Plum Fairy had rehearsed with André Eglevsky until he injured an ankle and the role was taken over by Nicholas Magallanes. Tallchief performed some harrowing off-center turns, was caught at the wrist by her partner and placed on balance only to execute the turns again. Another difficult moment came when she had to take a running leap to sit on her partner's shoulder, only to repeat it coming from the opposite direction. Balanchine placed her center stage at the opening of the Second Act in the Kingdom of the Sweets, or Kingdom of the Sugar-Plum Fairy, in her beautiful tutu and crown, a sparkling tsarina surrounded by little angels. In some performances her variation was performed at that point, in others after the pas de deux because there was not always a variation for her Cavalier. The dancers entertained Clara and Fritz, now sitting at a high table, surrounded by sweets, as they performed in the Spanish Chocolate, Tea, Coffee, Candy Cane, and Marzipan variations, including Mother Ginger with her Polichinelle children. It all culminated in the Waltz of the Flowers.
Tanaquil LeClercq was the Dewdrop soloist in the Waltz, sweeping through like a breeze, an added touch by Balanchine, although he had restored all of the Ivanov choreography just as he remembered it. Musically, Tchaikovsky had incorporated the newly invented celesta in the score for the Sugar-Plum variation, and the Balanchine production had a taped choir of 40 children’s voices from St. Thomas Episcopal Church to escort Clara and her Prince on their journey through the snow forest to the Kingdom of the Sugar-Plum Fairy.
Opening night, the first scene went without a hitch. The dances by the guests and the battle scene between the Nutcracker and The Mouse King went well until the growing tree, a prop that Balanchine insisted vital to the ballet, trembled and rumbled as it grew, entangled in ornaments and the living room curtains. It needed more time to grow and Balanchine later (1955) added the violin cadenza from Tchaikovsky’s "The Sleeping Beauty" to give more time for the living room set to rise and the journey through the snow to the Kingdom of the Sugar-Plum Fairy to begin. The tree had cost $80,000, including the machinery, a fortune at the time causing much consternation in the management. There was little room backstage at City Center to hang or store scenery, let alone give space for all the dancers entering and exiting the stage. The costumes were not quite complete for Karinska's opening night inspection. But she was backstage adding her finishing touches of a photo to a brooch that no one would ever see and adjusting the headdresses, the lace collars and men’s coats.
There were choreographed dances for the adults at the party and dances by boxed dolls, Columbine and Harlequin and a Toy Soldier. Drosselmeyer arrived with his nephew and the Nutcracker toy that enchanted Clara and was broken. The Drosselmeyer role was later often played by Balanchine, who liked to appear on stage in various levels of ghoulish makeup and behavior, while summoning the mice to enter and prepare for the battle scene.
We company members, having survived the party scene, ran up to the dressing room to change for the "snow scene" in ¾ length white tutus, never knowing that the first "snow fall" would obscure our vision and make the stage slippery as the white paper "flakes" poured down only to remain everywhere for the five weeks that the run would last. From there on, it was a race up and down to the dressing room to change costumes to be in one of the variations in the Kingdom of the Sweets (as it was later called). The Waltz of the Flowers for 12 of us was the finale. Then, we had to run back to the dressing room to change into a variation costume for the bows. It was exhausting! Afterwards on tour, every city wanted to see it no matter what the season.
One incident that made it all worthwhile on opening night was when a little girl from the audience, after the overture and party scene curtain had opened, ran down the aisle to the orchestra, and with her arms open to embrace the stage she loudly exclaimed that it was all in color! Her television experience was still in black and white. What a miracle it was for her. The conductor, Leon Barzin, let her stay with the orchestra for the entire first act.
The reviews were mixed as some critics felt Balanchine had abandoned his avant-garde status by returning to a classic at such a high price for an inferior ballet. Others felt that the ballet would be a yearly income-producing work and would give inspiration to the young dancers in the school. Still others felt that it was a work for, by and only for children and should not be considered seriously. Much of the artistry and detail had been overlooked.
Thereafter in following seasons, Balanchine, who could never let a detail be unchallenged, incorporated numerous changes. He added mechanical devices; removed the Cavalier's variation, then restored it; added more mice; new scenery, new lighting and costumes as the production moved from City Center to the New York State Theater. The walnut boat transporting the Little Princess (now sometimes named Mary) and the Nutcracker Prince were upgraded to a sleigh. The Sugar-Plum Fairy magically glided across the stage on pointe on a moving device.
In 1955, excerpts and revisions were adapted for New York and Montréal television. A full-length production was arranged for CBS-TV to be directed by their prize-winning producer. Balanchine, who had directed so many Hollywood films, would have none of it. He was a master at reworking entrances and exits for the camera, focusing on the dancing and working close-ups. There were disputes during the rehearsal as we stood around knowing perfectly well who would win the arguments. The production never came off, although some portions exist and there were many, many excerpts produced for television programs throughout the years as television production funds and performing space permitted.
After hundreds of performances by NYCB and local groups throughout the country, Hurok's remark is still true. "The Nutcracker" is now a Christmas tradition - a box-office success. Balanchine's version was the embodiment of classicism in its lucidity, simplicity, dignity and correctness of style. How fortunate that it came to us recreated by the master.