On November 25, 2017 I attended The Nutcracker ballet performance at the Eisemann Center in Richardson, Texas. The performance was an adaptation of a story by the same name which was written by E.T.A Hoffman. The show was a faithful, but imaginative depiction of the story. Overall, the presentation was successful in portraying the holiday classic that is The Nutcracker through the use majestic sets, extravagant costumes, and resonating music, all while still remaining true to the narrative of The Nutcracker. The production did this by having grand costumes and sets that resembled the time period of The Nutcracker and depicted the setting of the dances, the original music by Tchaikovsky which brought forth the emotions that are part of the …show more content…
The use of the characters Clara, Fritz, Herr Drosselmeyer, the Rat King, the Nutcracker, the Sugar Plum Fairy and her Cavalier, and many others are all classic characters that are in The Nutcracker, and they could have been used to stay true to the original, and not divert from illustrating the holiday tradition that is The Nutcracker. The use of the story telling was hand-in-hand with the narrative of the original, and the flow of the two acts mirrored the original tale as well. Next, the vivid costumes worn represented that of the time period in which The Nutcracker came from, which was 19th century Russia. The bright dresses and fancy suits worn by the men and women could show that the families were of the upper class celebrating Christmas. The costumes worn represented the characters from The Nutcracker, which allowed the production to depict the plot. The sets used could have also served a similar purpose, as the house with the party and the dances in the Kingdom of the Snow illustrated the plot as well. The effect of the Christmas tree growing and the breaking of the nutcracker doll could have been a throwback to the original Nutcracker. The music was originally composed by Tchaikovsky, and the use of his music may have been used to allow the audience to follow the show. The allegro tempo could be seen and heard during the fight scene between …show more content…
All of the original characters were present, and the structure of the dance was simultaneous to that of the tale. The costumes were elegant, yet represented the time period in which The Nutcracker came from, as the women wore bright, majestic dresses while the men wore mainly suits and turncoats when it came time for the battle scene. In the Kingdom of Sweets, the costumes depicted all the various characters such as bakers and candy canes accurately. Overall, the costumes were extremely faithful to the narrative, and they were indicative of the characters in The Nutcracker. The sets and props used illustrated where the dances were taking place, as the house with the large Christmas tree and presents along with the nutcracker doll and the background of snow and the moon show the setting of the dances. The music used was from the original and was composed by Tchaikovsky, and this allowed for the tone and emotions of the dance to be felt by the audience. During the fight scene, the music was fast paced and dark, whereas during the scenes in the Kingdom of the Sweets, the music was light and joyous, and this was done to keep the similar quality with that of the holiday tradition. The directors used Tchaikovsky’s original music, and thus the production was able to depict The Nutcracker in a loyal way since his music plays a vital part in the dance. The lighting techniques used served to
What happens when a ballet company’s classic Christmas tradition is unwrapped, discarded, and replaced with a glitzy and glamorous moneymaking expenditure? Many dance enthusiasts are left with this lingering question as The Boston Ballet struggles with a recent announcement from the Wang Theatre, its lifelong performance home, that next year’s production of the Nutcracker is being replaced by a touring show of the infamous Radio City Rockettes.
At the beginning of the production, there were three separate spots on the stage with a house in the background of each, all slightly a different style of house. These houses helped represent that there were three separate families being represented in the musical; Cinderella, Jack and his Mother, and the baker and his wife. The opening scene with the houses helped identify and separate the purposes of each distinctive family. For instance, Cinderella is seen tirelessly cleaning the floor, eluding to her tireless participation later on in the story. The baker and his wife are not only providing little red riding hood with
The Different Masks of the Characters in The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare
Half of the dances in the nutcracker suite are symbolic of different event in history or everyday life. A great example of a symbolic dance in the movie is the Russian dance; this dance that is performed in the Russian dance scene is a real Russian dance. Disney also instead of humans preforming it, they got the flowers preforming it which again gives it a very good vibe.
The costumes in Shrek The Musical were the cherry on top of an already well produced play. Shrek and Fiona looked like actual ogres and looked very realistic with the green face and body paint. From head to toe, Shrek looked like a real life ogre. His clothing topped of him ogre like look and made him look very far from human. Similarly, when Fiona turned into an ogre she envisioned an ogre from head to toe. Donkey’s costume was also very realistic. He looked very similar to Donkey in the movie and his ears brought the whole costume to life. Lord Farquaad’s costume was the most interesting in my personal opinion. His costume was made very creatively to make him look oddly short. He was left walking on his knees throughout the show and there was a black piece of fabric with short legs on the front to hide his actual legs. His makeup, especially his eyebrows made him look more sassy which fit his character very well. The flashy gems and fabric of his costume made him look like royalty which was very well fitting since he is a king in the play. Another costume that stood out to me was Pinnochio’s. His nose that lengthened when he lied was very creatively made and also very realistic. The body paint on his face and arms made him look like a real life doll and his shoes were a good touch in my opinion to the costume.
Tchaikovsky's "Nutcracker Suite" came first chronologically out of the three scenes mentioned. When introducing the piece, Deems Taylor states that Tchaikovsky actually detested this piece. When I began to listen to “Nutcracker Suite” and study the images on the screen, I noticed the various plants and animals dancing all represented a specific season, summer, fall, winter, spring. The images included fairies and forest nymphs gliding throughout the nature of the forest. The fairies began lighting up the flowers and placing dew on the plants which represented summer. Next, there were tiny, dancing mushrooms that surprisingly looked slightly angry. Then, flowers that appeared to look like ballerinas began dancing. Next, underwater goldfish began to dance very gracefully. I enjoyed watching the fish because I thought it was slightly amusing. Shortly after, there was a dance of more flowers...
While they just enter the cave, it is violins plucking make that background music. I have to say this scene really scares me because I am very afraid of spiders and the music at here plays in synch-point when they find out there are spiders on their bodies. When Jones turns back, the audience finally sees the spiders and there is a sudden sound made by the percussion and then followed by scratching strings’ sound play in a fast tempo. This creates the tensions of seeing those huge spiders and how Jones will overcome this problem. The music is kind of exotic since it is out of the normal music that we will hear from the orchestra, and it captures the dangerous and adventure unpredictable feelings since they are at the cave of the rainforest. Another example is the scene that happens around (00:36:23), which is when Jones and Marion arrived at Cairo. The music is different from what it was before since there was some western orchestra music before this. It adds more local instrument in the underscoring music, and I feel like it maybe some kind of instruments that are similar to flute or piccolo. Also, I hear some traditional percussion’s sound as well. Back into the releasing time of this film, many people may not have a comprehensive understanding of music from those cultures, and the composer basically helps us be more focused on the storyline
The sound effects and music for the play was recorded to go with the actions of the character’s and whatever was taking place on stage; for example, when Ian and Chuck would play a game since there was no television they needed sound effects to better depict them playing a game. The music used in the play was relevant to today’s period and fit in well with the scenes, like when Ian says he’s going to get a job the song “I’m going to win” fit in perfectly, because it showed his determination. They also used music to help...
The King for an example was the only character who was seen wearing animal fur on his robe. This outfit befitted his character because it magnified and brought out his barbaric and savage like characteristics. Furthermore, the costumes allowed the audience to see that stark differences in each social class. It allowed for a visual comparison between the totally different lifestyles that Hamlet and Ophelia had, reinforcing the reason why Laertes cautioned Ophelia about her relationship with Hamlet and why Polonius was so obsequious to the King. The outfits thus explain why each character behaves the way they do, creating a more effective portrayal of the play
...g the children gifts. Instead Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthazar do! The children often leave their shoes filled with barley and wheat on balconies, porches, or under the Christmas tree, for the 3 kings to leave presents in during the night. In the morning the barley and wheat is replaced with toys, candy, and other gifts!
The costumes of the actors that are used in the film also give us the feeling that these folks are not from our time, but we can identify with their “wizardly” presence.
Like Zeffirelli, Luhrmann used many symbols to get across to the audience what his dialogue missed, and what he wanted to communicate to the audience about each character. For example Romeo’s costume may be the first thing the audience may notice; Romeo is wearing armour, symbolising him being the knight in shining armour. As for Juliet her costume is a white chast white gown from her earlier angel costume, signifying innocence and purity
'It seems to me, my dear friend, that the music of this ballet will be one of my best creations. The subject is so poetic, so grateful for music, that 1 have worked on it with enthusiasm and written it with the warmth and enthusiasm upon which the worth of a composition always depends." - Tchaikovsky, to Nadia von Meck.
In both Hamlet and Don Quixote we find many characters that fashion themselves in different ways in order to gain something from the situations they are put into. These characters include Rosencrantz and Guildenstern found in Hamlet and Sancho Panza and the Priest in Don Quixote. In Hamlet two characters tend to stand out as people who have become accustomed to self fashioning. These two characters are Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. When these two men are introduced in the story, they both have just arrived at the castle to meet with King Claudius and Queen Gertrude.
But why has this ballet maintained its mass appeal since its first performance in 1892? Perhaps it is because, in an effort to outstage previous performances, directors continue to integrate elements of expressionism like plot distortion and stylized acting to create a fantasy world. The Nutcracker, written by Peter Ilych Tchaikovsky in 1891, was first performed a week before Christmas in 1892 (History of the Nutcracker). Born in Votkinsk, Russia, on May 7, 1840, Tchaikovsky, the son of a mining engineer, had only occasional musical training as a youth (“Peter Ilych Tchaikovsky” 1). Around the age of twenty-one, he did serious musical study and graduated with a silver medal from the St. Petersburg Conservatory(1).