Tulsa Ballet will be performing the holiday classic The Nutcracker for the fiftieth year at Tulsa Performing Arts Center from December 7-22, 2020.
There is a reason why The Nutcracker has continuously charmed the hearts of families all around the Tulsa area for 50 years. It’s not just because of the surreal magical moment snow drops on the stage from the sky inside of the Tulsa PAC during the performance, it’s not just the breathtaking choreography from Artistic Director Marcello Angelini, and it’s not just the classic story of the beloved Nutcracker character we have come to love since its storybook debut in 1816. Audiences from all over come to see Tulsa Ballet’s The Nutcracker not only for all of those reasons, but because of all of the incredible history this ballet holds within the hearts of the Tulsa community.
“Celebrating 50 years of continuous run of The Nutcracker is an opportunity for reflection and assessment. I wouldn’t be surprised if the total number of people that interacted with our The Nutcracker during its 50-year run is close to a million. Those are lives that, in one way or another, were touched and maybe even shaped by the Mouse King, The Nutcracker, or the Sugar Plum Fairy and her Cavalier. No matter on which side of the pit they happen to be, we left a small piece of The Nutcracker in their hearts!”
– Tulsa Ballet Artistic Director Marcello Angelini
Tulsa Ballet (then known as Tulsa Civic Ballet) first debuted its first full-length performance of The Nutcracker on December 13, 1969, with choreography by Tulsa Ballet founders Roman Jasinski and Moscelyne Larkin. Many of the dancers from this first performance went on to achieve Principal positions at prestigious ballet companies all around the U.S., along with two of the original cast members, Cheryl Forrest and Georgia Snoke, still holding positions on the Tulsa Ballet Board of Directors, heading up the archives department, preserving Tulsa Ballet’s long and inspirational history.
After an outstanding 33 years of Jasinki’s The Nutcracker, its final presentation was in 2002, ushering in a new and exciting production from the company’s current Artistic Director the next year, starring Daniela Buson and Alfonso Martin. Set in 1920’s Paris, Angelini’s The Nutcracker is a beautiful and magical version of this classic tale that is synonymous with the holiday season.
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