The Nutcracker (Moscow City Ballet)

So for my first Blog of the year I thought why not write a review on having seen a ballet for the first time ever so here goes..... It's quite odd for an audience to clap before the curtains come up but as you do in the theatre you have that sheep factor and applaud when the audience applause, we'll at least in this instance I for sure did. Aside from the applause the orchestra went on to play a wonderful interlude to open and set the scene which fell upon a minimal set with a very detailed backdrop of a spacious mansion with a tall elegant Christmas tree and a chaise longue situated lower stage right. And now the ballet has been set bring on the dancers and Oh My they came one with such a strong presence in their traditional period costumes and my face lit up like a child in awe in a candy shop. From then on I had a permanent smile on my face throughout Act 1 as it felt truly magical and very much like Christmas despite having taken my Christmas tree down a couple of days ago! I certainly wasn't expecting to laugh out loud during a ballet, but to my surprise many comedy elements had been added in for heightened affect, especially the male dancer dressed as Santa with a sack on his back and still moving so blissfully. A beautiful backdrop ascended before the end of Act 1 consisting of many pine trees with trickles of snow, giving a real pretty feeling across the stage and quite possibly the auditorium too. I can not fault the dancers in any shape that's for sure or form. They all had the extreme wow factor in their moves and stillness. I must admit I was quite shocked at how long they could stand with one leg in the air and not even see their lungs expand or abbreviate. The all male sequences I found very dramatic with the aid of a powerful orchestra, however upon landing the males had much of a louder landing than the females. I thought this added more of a dramatic dark affect with lighting dimly lit to further add affect, not to mention adding a slight hint of machoness to contrast men in tights! To juxtapose this the all female sequence once again made my smile stretch to my ears and my head tilt as I was fully in awe during Act 2 with all the women in white to portray purity and elegance. This particular scene very much reminded of the style used by synchronised swimmers. The solo pieces in Act 2 were just phenomenal and you have to see it to know what I mean I had stopped scribing and watched each dancer take centre stage and just capture my attention as if spell bounded by the roaring force of ballet. The backdrop in Act 2 was very colourful with pastel but metallic coloured flowers which matched the dancers costume very beautiful and bright too. I must admit I had lost the narrative during Act 2 but can't complain as the dancers took stage of how flexible and technical they all dance. Personally Act 2 for me was more about ballet dancing in itself not to mention all the classic numbers played from the greatest composer himself Mr Tchaikovsky. Even if you don't like classical music you will find yourself swaying to some of the numbers the orchestra played due to them being so popular among many commercials, TV Dramas and radio. So how was it seeing my first ballet? Absolutely tremendous and I have been inspired to get back in shape and will be heading to the gym tomorrow, but don't think I will be as fit, flexible and healthy as the dancers but one can aim high aye! If you haven't seen a ballet yet please do go see you won't be disappointed and I would rate this 10/10 and a huge well done to all dancers, musicians, crew and choreographer of the Moscow City Ballet. Jasly