Moscow Ballets Great Russian Nutcracker Tickets

Christmas feels incomplete without the timeless classic, The Nutcracker. This ballet is the creation of the legendary Pytor Ilyich Tchaikovsky who introduced it more than a century ago and it is still widely popular to this day. The Moscow Ballet is now going to present its version of The Nutcracker across different cities of North America. So, if you want to experience this spectacular show live then book your Moscow Ballet tickets.

A Brief History of ‘The Nutcracker’

Known as one of the major authors of the Romantic movement, E.T.A. Hoffman wrote, ‘The Nutcracker and the Mouse King’ in 1816. Almost thirty years later, that novella was revised by the prolific French writer, Alexander Dumas. It was his version which was later converted into a libretto and was soon choreographed by two renowned ballet masters, Marius Petipa and his assistant Lev Ivanov.  The duo then approached Pytor Ilyich Tchaikovsky, the first Russian composer to make an everlasting impression internationally with his music, to write the score of the ballet.

Making Its Debut

On December 18, 1892, theater fans gathered in St. Petersburg at the Imperial Mariinsky Theatre to watch the premiere of The Nutcracker. It debuted on the same day as Tchaikovsky’s last opera, ‘Iolanta.’ The performance of the show was conducted by the Italian pianist and composer, Ricardo Drigo who had worked in many ballets including, ‘Le Réveil de Flore,’ ‘Les millions d'Arlequin’ and ‘La Flûte magique.’ The show casted,  Stanislava Belinskaya as Clara, Antonietta Dell’Era as the Sugar Plum Fairy, Timofey Stukolkin as Drosselmeyer, Pavel Gerdt as Prince Coqueluche, and Sergei Legat as the Nutcracker Prince.

Unfortunately, the debut of The Nutcracker did not receive much success and it failed to wow the critics too. However, the score by Tchaikovsky received a better reception and had a lot of the critics raving about it too.

Other Notable Productions

In 1919, the famous Russian ballet choreographer, Alexander Alexeyevich Gorsky revived The Nutcracker. In his production, he did not include the characters of the Sugar Plum Fairy and Cavalier. Instead, for those dances Clara and The Nutcracker Prince took over. His production influenced Vasili Vainonen, the Soviet choreographer who staged his production which was similar to Grosky's. Vainonen’s version of the show influenced many later productions.

During the same year, The Nutcracker was performed outside Russia for the first time, in England by Nicholas Sergeyev. After six years, the ballet made its way to the United States and an abridged version of the show was performed by the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo in New York. The Nutcracker was then performed in its entirety by William Christensen, the founder of San Francisco Ballet in 1944. His version of the ballet enjoyed massive success which resulted in the San Francisco Ballet performing The Nutcracker throughout the holiday season.

Since then, different choreographers have performed many beautiful versions of The Nutcracker. Some of the most famous productions include those by, Mikhail Baryshnikov for the American Ballet Theatre, Yuri Grigorovich for the Bolshoi Ballet, Peter Wright for the Royal Ballet and Kent Stowell for the Pacific Northwest Ballet.

Russian Ballet Nutcracker Tickets

Moscow Ballet’s version of The Nutcracker is popularly known as the ‘Great Russian Nutcracker.’ This production is different from others. In this version, the setting is in Moscow and features the city’s onion-domed skyline as the backdrop. The traditional folk characters of Russia including, Snegurochka (Snow Maiden) and Ded Moroz (Father Christmas) are also included in the show. It will also feature life-sized Matryoshka Dolls, flapping winged owl, The Dove of Peace with a 20ft wingspan and a 50 ft tall Christmas Tree.

This production of The Nutcracker has also been praised by many notable publications including, The New York Times, Denver Post, Los Angeles Times and Calgary Herald. It is now going on tour so, if you want to surprise your family this holiday season, then book your Moscow Ballets Great Russian Nutcracker tickets.