The Nutcracker

In 1891, the prominent choreographer Marius Petipa commissioned Peter Tchaikovsky to write the music for The Nutcracker Ballet. Petipa developed the scenario of this ballet, but when he fell ill, it was left to Lev Ivanov to finish the choreography. In 1892, the first showing of the Nutcracker took place at the Mariinsky Theatre in St-Petersburg Russia, home of the Kirov Ballet.

The Nutcracker has become a staple of ballet companies the world over, presented over the Winter holidays in many countries.

Video Clips of the Stanislavsky Ballet's Nutcracker Working Rehearsal are available in the following sequences:

• Act I, Sc. 1: Christmas Eve-Presentation of the Nutcracker Doll to Masha
• Act I, Sc. 3: The Enchanted Journey-Dance of the Sugarplum Fairies
• Act II: The Celebration in the Magic Palace-Russian dance
• Act II: The Celebration in the Magic Palace-Spanish dance
• Act II: The Celebration in the Magic Palace-Ensemble

Each clip is less than two minutes in length. To view, please click on any of the clips listed above. Cybercasts and video clips require the RealPlayer, available at http://www.real.com. Downloading and installation instructions are also available.

Nutcracker Web Resources

Nutcracker - Information and Links for the Nutcracker Ballet

Home page leads you to a lot of good links to the Nutcracker; has many listings of all the performances great and small in North America; the story of the Drosselmeyer gift; music with links to Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky; directory of Nutcracker show information by  location; links to Nutcracker related sites and information about Nutcracker movies.

Bravo's Nutcracker

This site includes interesting footnotes, background information, and quotes.

Amazon.com Nutcracker Lookup

A site for ordering books online that deal with the Nutcracker.

Nutcracker resources from Bruce Marriott

The Ballet.Co. site about all things ballet and dance in the UK includes a montly magazine, Nutcracker listings, postings & exchange of views, ballet background and contexts, and popular links.

The Mining Co.'s Nutcracker

This page includes the legend of the Nutcracker and history of the ballet itself.

Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite

Part of a personal home page which includes a brief backgound on the Nutcracker suite.

Swan Lake

Following their success with The Nutcracker, Petipa and Ivanov staged The Swan Lake at the Mariinsky Theatre in 1895. It, like the Nutcracker, was scored by Tchaikovsky. In this production, Petipa choreographed for Acts I and III, while Ivanov choreographed for Acts II and IV. Unlike the previous productions of the same story, drawn from the German folk tale, this version was highly successful and has become one of history's best loved ballets. Performed many times since and featuring some of the world's greatest dancers and choreographers, it continues to be a favorite among performers and audiences alike, open to contemporary interpretations while remaining true to the strong traditions of the original.

Swan Lake Web Resources

Bravo's Swan Lake

This site includes interesting footnotes, background information, and quotes.

NYCB Notes on Swan Lake

This provides a brief background on Swan Lake.

Amazon.com's Swan Lake Lookup

A site for ordering books online that deal with Swan Lake.

Swan Lake

Part of the St Petersburg project of RCSD, a page detailing the "politics, economics, and artistic expressions of the culture of St. Petersburg during the Russian transformation from imperialism to socialism" with overviews of the culture, the role of dance and the arts.

Romantic Ballet Evening

A ballet company develops a series of productions which they perform on a regular basis; these performances become part of their repertoire. During their run at the Kennedy Center, the Stanislavsky Ballet performed a program of short works based on their repertoire. Among them were Fokine's Chopiniana, better known in the United States as Les Sylphides; Pas de Quatre, a ballet for four dancers performed over the years by some of history's greatest ballerinas; and Spirit Ball, "a ghostly fantasy" commissioned in 1985 and choreographed by the company's artistic director, Dmitri Bryantsev.