Review of ‘The Nutcracker’: “Eye-candy staging, but Fossil-meyer movements”

The Birmingham Royal Ballet continues its holiday tradition, bringing back the magic of  Tchaikovsky’s signature Christmas piece to the stage of the Royal Albert Hall. Guillermo Nazara shares his views on the show, to let us know if this return production still serves as the company’s toy soldier

Every time this quintessentially Christmas plan (I guess Mariah still has a few more hours to live) returns to the scene, I can’t help but think of the irony every artist’s legacy seems to hold. On its first opening, The Nutcracker was far from being the success it’s regarded as today. And yet, no theatregoer in their right mind could ever toy with the idea of depriving the holiday season from the most captivating fantasy ever set to tread (and pirouette) the boards.

A festive custom spanning over decades, The Birmingham Royal Ballet appears to have added more than just a grain of sand to build the lore – with their annual staging of Tchaikovsky’s signature piece making its yearly comeback to the Royal Albert Hall, perpetuating a tradition that confidently marks a highlight in the venue’s ending programming. Such anticipation creates inevitable hype. And when you find yourself reuniting with a production you absolutely loved back in the day, the expectation can only grow exponentially. Unavoidably too, so can the disappointment.

Despite the lush visuals the montage is able to conveys with utmost command, there’s very little correlation with its core delivery for almost the entire performance. As Simon Callow’s disembodied words fill the space as a prelude to the Overture (a charming trait that, nonetheless, aims in the opposite direction of the language of Ballet is all about), their sumptuous portrayal of the spellbinding fairy tale manages to capture the  viewer’s imagination – but sadly, almost no speck of their hearts.

Preserving the choreography designed by Peter Wright and Lev Ivanov, this conservative British-Russian hybrid flaunts historical value, but practically no element of enticement or pizzazz – resulting in what, on the whole, feels like a rather bland and, above all, tired take on the material that constantly struggles to achieve memorability in a contemporary environment. There are parts that still boast technical grandeur, and truth being told, the second half of Act Two is carried out with complete impeccability – but in the end, that’s an excessive, unnecessary wait that brings along too many unsatisfying moments, where we can appreciate a concerning lack of splendour not only from a creative perspective, but also its execution.

In any case, we can take solace in the fact that the glitz of Tchaikovsky’s darling magnum opus is kept alive by its beautifully sounding orchestra – performing every passage with effortless flow, delicacy and whimsicality all throughout; ultimately, reconnecting with the playful spirit The Nutcracker was conceived with, and it’s supposed to draw out from every member of the audience every moment its timeless, sugar-plum-coated melodies emerge.

Building a conflictive impression on its guests, Birmingham Royal Ballet’s The Nutcracker sets a triumphant outcome in its narrative endeavours, but strives to accomplish the same level of excellence and freshness from the lead component of the adaptation. We can relish on somw details, but the general look is eventually flawed by some of its more essential components. For clarification purposes, this is, nonetheless, a ride that we can enjoy. But regardless of its themes, I would prefer a rendition where dancers do not that often look still as a mouse.

Birmingham Royal Ballet’s upcoming productions are available on the following link.

By Guillermo Nazara