I love our tradition of heading into Boston the day after Thanksgiving to see the performance of The Nutcracker. I was invited to the dress rehearsal and it was a fantastic show!
 Mikko Nissinen’s The Nutcracker marks the five-year anniversary of Nissinen’s re-envisioned family-friendly tradition. The Nutcracker will run November 25-December 31, 2016 so there is plenty of time to get your tickets. All 43 performances of The Nutcracker will take place at the Boston Opera House (539 Washington St, Boston, MA 02111) It is a wonderful way to ring in the holiday season and a great way to start a tradition with your family. The Nutcracker performance length is approximately 2 hours including one intermission. If you have young children I would suggest attending a 1:00 pm matinee.
The Nutcracker includes the full company of 57 dancers, 13 Boston Ballet II dancers, and 224 Boston Ballet School students and they all dazzle. From young dancers to more experienced dancers they all do a fantastic job. The costumes and set design are magnificent and of course the music is classic. Each performance will be accompanied by Tchaikovsky’s renowned score performed by Boston Ballet Orchestra, led by five conductors: Music Director Emeritus Jonathan McPhee, Principal Guest Conductor Beatrice Jona Affron, and guest conductors Geneviève Leclair, Ming Luke, and Craig Edwards.
I really love all the scenes but my favorite is the dance of the sugar plum fairies. My husband had never seen the performance and really did not know the story! Mikko Nissinen’s The Nutcracker is based on the libretto by Alexandre Dumas père titled The Tale of the Nutcracker, which is adapted from E. T. A. Hoffmann’s story The Nutcracker and the Mouse King. The story follows the wondrous journey of young Clara, who receives a nutcracker as a gift at her family’s Christmas Eve party. Later that night, her nutcracker magically transforms into a handsome prince, who leads her through an enchanted forest and on to the Nutcracker Prince’s Kingdom.
Tickets start at $35. For more information, visit bostonballet.org
Disclosure: My family and I received tickets to the dress rehearsal. All opinions in this blog post are my own.