With the January blues firmly set in, I was in dire need of some festive spirit to lift my mood, and the Scottish Ballet’s Nutcracker delivered in abundance.
The absolute classic has returned to HM Theatre with energy, vibrancy and beauty certain to warm the cockles of anyone’s heart.
The firm family favourite is the largest-ever tour conducted by the ballet company and encompasses 74 performances across six cities.
Having started in December, many would have had the chance to drink in the magic before Christmas, and I wasn’t sure how I would feel watching exactly five weeks on.
But it was just the warm and fuzzy joy I needed and the packed out audience for opening night seemed to agree with me too.
This timeless ballet follows little Clara, who may be small but delivers a mighty performance, as she drifts off to sleep on Christmas Eve before the adventure begins.
Meeting the dashing Nutcracker Prince, fighting off the larger-than-life Rat King, and exploring the Land of Sweets with the Sugar Plum Fairy is just some of the magic to unfold.
I have been lucky enough to watch The Nutcracker on a number of occasions – with some productions proving better than others and last night’s certainly didn’t disappoint.
The poise and grace of each and every dancer created something truly beautiful on stage. Couple that with the magnificent staging and costumes – which seem to become more and more impressive with every touring show I see –Â and you really did feel like you were being whisked away to a magical world.
It was the performance of every little girl’s dreams and the audience was packed full of them last night eager to enjoy!
The little girl in me was also delighted to see the live orchestra return to perform alongside the ballet company.
The Tchaikovsky score is one of my favourites and the Scottish Ballet Orchestra gave a phenomenal performance – something I wished as a small child I would one day perform in an ensemble. They were truly wonderful.
If you have always wondered about seeing a ballet or perhaps have convinced yourself it’s maybe not your thing, I beg you to give this one a go. It was absolutely wonderful from start to finish and I challenge anyone to leave not impressed by what they see.
The Nutcracker is on until Saturday, you can buy tickets here. I hope you do.
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