I hate cliches like – ‘it was a show of two halves’, but in the case of MATTHEW BOURNE’S NUTCRACKER! it is most definitely the case. We were at the opening night of the production at the Wales Millennium Centre, a perfect stage for a show like this. And what a show it is. The audience were eagerly waiting, officially mask-free for the first time in almost two years.
You can see what the audience thought of the show a little further down this page, including young Elias House who was on his first theatre visit with his Mum.
Matthew Bourne has had a love affair with Nutcracker for thirty years now, and has taken us on a few journeys with various productions, this however, is his most lavish and ambitious, and dare I say, the most perfect I have ever seen.
Incredibly, it’s exactly 130 years (and 3 months to be precise) since Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker, as it was back then, had its first ever premiere. Sadly it wasn’t the success the great man had hoped for. In fact it wasn’t until the 1960s when audiences really started to appreciate this great work.
Thirty years after that Matthew Bourne took hold and sprinkled a special kind of magic over the Tchaikovsky’s masterpiece. And this reimagined production takes us on a journey filled with colour and laughter, with some of the most incredible sets and costumes you’ll see.
Matthew said of his production…….
‘This new version has been substantially re-choreographed and many of the designs have developed further from the 1992 original.‘
The story begins on Christmas Eve in the orphanage of Dr and Mrs Dross (Danny Reubens & Daisy May Kemp) which is dark and depressing and more suited to a Dickens festive time than the traditional family Christmas we know and love. But there is also something beautiful and mesmerising about the monochrome set.
It’s here we meet the Dross children Sugar and Fritz (Ashley Shaw & Dominic North), spoilt, obnoxious and instantly dislikable – in a likeable way. I could feel a good old fashioned festive ‘BOOOOO’ building inside me – but I resisted. Then there’s our heroine Clara (Katrina Lyndon), along with the other kids in the orphanage – all played by adults. The costumes add to the belief, but it’s the expressions and acting which really help us suspend belief we are watching adults on stage.
As you would expect, the dancing is incredible and there’s something about the grey and white set which plays with your head. The use of angles and lighting is deliberately disorientating in a clever and effective way – very Tim Burtonesque.
On Christmas Day the delightfully horrible Sugar and Fritz open their presents in front of the other children. Plenty of sweets and toys but not an ounce of festive spirit as they refuse to share them. There is a token gesture to Christmas with streamers hung, a manky old Christmas tree and the children given party hats to wear, all for the benefit of the Governors who are expected at the orphanage
When they arrive they come armed with presents for everyone. As the children line-up they each take a gift, by the time Clara gets to the basket, there’s nothing left. As the visitors leave she takes one more look in the seemingly empty basket and there, hidden under a cover, is a colourful nutcracker doll.
Clara loves it and celebrates by dancing with it, but of course this makes Sugar jealous as she wants Clara’s doll. Her and Fritz try to wrestle it from Clara only to break the doll in the struggle. Sugar gives up and leaves Clara to nurse the broken toy.
If you know the Nutcracker! story it’s the doll that comes to life and helps the children escape into a fantastical world of make believe. The adventure begins on a snow filled stage at the edge of a frozen lake. The dancing is as smooth as you’ll ever see, almost like the dancers are gliding effortlessly across the stage. And as the very bitter Sugar (now a Princess) swoops in, Act 1 comes to an end.
If you’ve seen the posters for this production they are bright and colourful and not at all like the first act, which lasts a while before we see the transformation. But this is really effective, it’s like our eyes grow accustomed to the beautifully drab and clinical setting of the orphanage, so when the change comes, as it most certainly does, the effect is mind-blowing.
Imagine if you can an explosion of Christmas colour bursting onto the Donald Gordon stage at the Wales Millennium Centre. Although if you are expecting it to be all pink, you’ll have to be a little patient.
All the characters in Clara’s fantasy are brought back as sweets, including Gobstoppers, Allsorts and Knickerbocker Glory.
It’s the same cast transformed into alternate roles. I would actually direct you to our feature on the show where you can download a fantastic visual guide which you can put on your device to help follow who is who at what particular time – FEATURE.
What is so clever about a Matthew Bourne production is the thought given to the story, as much as the choreography and sets. I’ve got to say, this is like watching a play without words at times, you can feel the story coming alive from the stage with some brilliant dancing, and acting from this talented company.
Which is a great time to see what the opening night audience thought of the show. Watch out for young Elias House, who was sat in front of me in the auditorium. He lived every second of his first ballet, and indeed first ever visit to the theatre.
Sir Matthew is a lover of fantasy, in all its many guises, and Nutcracker! is no exception. There is sensual thrusting and body moving, all done in the best possible taste of course. As we slide into Sweetieland we enter through a giant mouth, with the dancers filling their own mouth with cake (not really) with a fair bit of lip licking. It’s a visual delight to say the least, and the incredible attention to every single detail is pure genius.
I’ve talked a lot about the costumes and set, but Nutcracker! is renowned for having the most beautiful music. Matthew says that the success of Nutcracker! is largely because of Tchaikovsky’s sublime score. The music is beautiful and of course comes with a ‘Tchaikovsky greatest hit‘ or two – if I can call them that.
Of course I can, because the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy, isn’t only one of the most iconic pieces of music but actually one of the most recognisable dances too. And Matthew Bourne does it again with his interpretation. I really don’t want to give too much away but it is everything you’d expect in the piece, and so much more.
As with all good Christmas tales you need a good wedding, and boy does Nutcracker! deliver one.
The stage lifts to reveal the most enormous wedding cake cake which really brings Anthony Ward’s design into perspective. Once again it’s slanted, the colours are as vivid as can be, and yes, we finally get the pink we were promised in the posters. I loved how the guests sat on each of the cake layers.
Nutcracker! is a cracker of a show, there’s no other way to describe it. From the first moment to the final bow you won’t be able to take your eyes from the stage, there is so much going on.
Grab your other half, the kids, and any first timers and get along to the Wales Millennium Centre while you can. There is so much to enjoy in this family friendly, fun filled production. MATTHEW BOURNE’S NUTCRACKER! runs through to Saturday 26th March. Performances are at 7:30pm each evening with a 2:30pm matinee on Thursday and Saturday. Tickets start at £18 and we would highly recommend you grab yours now – HERE.
Also check out our feature on the show, and Matthew Bourne himself, there are also some great resource packs you can download to help follow the show and characters – HERE.
