A handful of Tri-City dancers are limbering up for the opening night of the Alberta Ballet's Nutcracker at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre tonight.
Presented by Ballet BC, along with live music by the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, The Nutcracker runs Dec. 28 to 31 with three evening performances and two matinees. And the $1.5-million production budget reflects the opulent grandeur of Imperial Russia where The Nutcracker takes place.
Choreographed by Edmund Stripe, with sets and costumes by Emmy Award-winning designer Zack Brown, the Alberta Ballet's Nutcracker includes legions of youngsters playing everything from soldiers to rats.
Among them are Anne Hung and Hannah-Jane Clutchey, playing a rat and a soldier respectively; both train at the Tri-City Dance Centre in Coquitlam. Victoria Melo, who takes her dance lessons at Place des Arts, will play a page girl and a soldier while Sarah Baldwin of Port Coquitlam's Mellado Dance will also play a soldier.
They'll be joining members of the Alberta Ballet, Canada's third-largest dance company, as they perform the holiday classic set to Tchaikovsky's glorious musical score.
The Nutcracker is at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre Dec. 28 to 30 at 7:30 p.m. and Dec. 30 and 31 at 2 p.m. Tickets range from $22.50 to $70 and can be purchased through Ticketmaster by calling 1-855-985-2787 or at www.ticketmaster.ca. Visit www.albertaballet.com for more information.
