Nutcracker Recap Part 1: Perry
The sugar plum haze is dissipating, the costumes have been sent to the cleaners, and it’s time to take a look back at Genesee Dance Theatre’s ninth Nutcracker season! We performed two performances in Perry on December 2nd and two more in Wellsville, NY on December 8th and 9th.
Enjoy memories of the production experience as captured by our resident Genesee Dance photographer, Maggie Jett — with extra contributions from some of our ballet parents and dancers. Today’s post focuses on the first week of the production in Perry.
Want to watch the full show? Access the recording now!
Clara and the “Mice” - photo by Maggie Jett
‘Twas the Week Before Nutcracker
The Nutcracker is a Christmas classic. But preparation for each season’s performances starts months (or even years) before the curtain rises. Auditions, rehearsals, production meetings, costume repair, travel booking . . . all of it comes to head during production week.
Our production week starts with full run-throughs in the studio with all of the local cast members. During these rehearsals, we work to put the finishing touches on scenes, transitions, and costumes. The final cast members — visiting guest artists — arrive Thursday just in time for our first rehearsal on stage.
Samuel Humphreys and Analia Farfan - photo by Maggie Jett
We were happy to have Analia Farfan returning to perform the Sugar Plum Fairy this season. Samuel Humphreys joined her to perform as “Cavalier”, the gentleman who dances with the Sugar Plum Fairy in the grand pas de deux in Act 2. Chris Collins, a freelance performer based in Rochester, also made a return to Genesee Dance Theatre as The Nutcracker Prince.
Chris Collins, Analia Farfan, Samuel Humphreys - photo by Maggie Jett
One of the most challenging parts of the ballet for the dancer who plays Clara (this year, Ellie Hartman) is the pas de deux at the end of Act 1. This was Ellie’s first experience with partnering (dancing a pas de deux) and she only had a couple of hours to learn and rehearse with Chris before tech rehearsal. You’d never know it by how beautiful and confident they looked performing together!
Ellie Hartman and Chris Collins - photo by Maggie Jett
Tech rehearsal at Perry High School went off without a hitch. From setting the light and music cues for every scene and story beat, to helping dancers adjust to the new space, there are always more details to address than I have in the schedule. The knowledgeable staff at Perry school’s auditorium make the tech side of things super smooth, leaving me to focus on the dancing.
Nutcracker in Perry
After spending the morning teaching Pilates and our preschool classes, it was off to the theatre for performance #1! We welcomed about 250 audience members to our 2 p.m. performance, including plenty of excited kids. Performers loved hearing their reactions throughout the show.
The highlight for me (if I had to choose) was watching Waltz of the Snowflakes from the back of the audience for the first time. This was the first full snow scene we’ve ever included in our production and it’s my favorite piece of the score. At almost seven minutes of nonstop dancing, it also happens to be one of the most challenging and exhausting pieces for the corps de ballet. Seeing the final product on stage with lights, backdrop and costumes gave me the kind of unique emotional swell that makes all the effort worthwhile.
In between performances, most of our dancers enjoyed a potluck meal back in the studio organized by our wonderful dance families. Thank you to the ballet moms who ensured all our dancers were well-nourished for the second performance at 7 p.m.!
After the final Perry performance, our staff and volunteers worked quickly to pack up sets, costumes, and our traveling rolls of dance flooring and bring them back to the studio. Yes, a LOT of work goes into Nutcracker, even after the curtains come down!
Too bad we don’t have any fun along the way. None at all.
I’ll share the rest of our Nutcracker adventures, including our school and library shows, in part two.
You can see a few previews by following Genesee Dance on Instagram and Facebook.
