The Sedona Dance Academy will present its annual community production of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s “The Nutcracker” at the Sedona Performing Arts Center on Saturday, Dec. 14, at 4 p.m. Now in its fifth year, the show will be taking place at SPAC for the first time.
The ballet, which is based on E.T.A. Hoffmann’s 1816 novella “The Nutcracker and the Mouse King,” follows the adventure of young Marie as she dreams her nutcracker and toys come to life, defeat the Rat King and journey to the Land of Snow and the Kingdom of Sweets to meet the Sugar Plum Fairy, who will be played by returning guest artist Eastlyn Jensen of Ballet Arizona.
“They need to be able to see that it is possible,” SDA founder Jessica Phillips said of Jensen’s guest appearance. “If they don’t see that level of artistry, and also the ability to get paid to do what you love, as a ballerina, they just don’t know it’s possible. As a child, I saw a live performance, and because of that show, I knew it was possible, and I wanted to do it. I always encourage my students to go to Phoenix and see some shows like this to inspire them. So it’s really special to be able to bring somebody to our hometown to inspire them.”
The performance will feature contemporary dance elements as well as songs like “Jingle Bell Rock” in addition to Tchaikovsky’s music, an approach that SDA employed last year at the Phillip England Center for the Performing Arts in Camp Verde, when it drew a standing-room-only crowd. For that occasion, Phillips added modern interpretations of the Arabian and Russian dance sequences and cast a Rat Queen instead of a Rat King.
Phillips added that she was excited about partnering with the Sedona Community and Youth Orchestra for the first time. The orchestra, led by co-directors Kristina Beachell and Courtney Yeates, will be performing five selections during “The Nutcracker.”
“Bringing live music just creates a totally magical atmosphere. Dance and live music are the original theatre. It’s how it’s intended to be,” Phillips said
SCYO’s junior section, the Prelude Orchestra, will begin the program before the senior Concert Orchestra will perform the iconic “Nutcracker” overture as well as several pieces that will accompany the dancers
“It brings culturally enriching experiences to our young musicians to be able to express themselves in this show,” Beachell said. “We’ve opened up to intergenerational musicians. So we do have some older people playing with us now, and that intergenerational experience in performance and in rehearsal has really helped build some bridges in our community.”
The SCYO musicians take part in weekly lessons, 34 Saturday rehearsals throughout the year and multiple annual performances.
SDA and SCYO “dreamt about putting together a truly dynamic collaborative performance of the Nutcracker Ballet for their respective students,” Beachell wrote. “Instructors are truly excited to see the dream finally come to fruition. The countless hours of hard work that their dedicated students put forth in this journey will culminate in what is sure to be a spectacular collaborative performance. It’s not often that musicians of this age have the opportunity to play for a live ballet production, and vice versa, it’s not often that young dancers have the opportunity to dance to a live orchestra. This presents a unique experience for the young performing artists in Sedona to work together.”
“It’s such a sweet tradition because everybody knows ‘The Nutcracker,’” Phillips said. “I personally have performed it like over 500 times in my career. Really see my students come to life when they’re connected to a storyline, also a storyline that they know and have heard of because it makes it even more special for them.”
For tickets, visit SedonaDanceAcademy.org, and for more information, contact Phillips at jessica@sedonadanceacademy.org or (713) 703-9862.
