“The Nutcracker” opens Dec. 7 at the Tanger Center
Special to the Peacemaker / December 8, 2023
Image provided by the University of North Carolina School of the Arts
Nutcracker performances are Thursday-Friday, Dec. 7-8, at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, Dec. 9, at noon and 7:30 p.m.; and Sunday, Dec. 10, at 2 p.m.
A beloved holiday tradition will soon return to the Piedmont Triad when the University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA) debuts the 2023 production of “The Nutcracker” at the Steven Tanger Center for the Performing Arts. Beginning Thursday, Dec. 7, through Sunday, Dec. 10, UNCSA will present five performances of “The Nutcracker” there while its home theater, the Stevens Center in Winston-Salem, undergoes a comprehensive renovation.
Performances are Thursday-Friday, Dec. 7-8, at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, Dec. 9, at noon and 7:30 p.m.; and Sunday, Dec. 10, at 2 p.m. Ticket prices begin at $31 and can be purchased at TangerCenter.com/Nutcracker. Optional upgrades include on-site VIP parking, Lee & Wrangler Lounge access and the Tanger Center’s pre-event Prelude Dining experience for select performances. More information about “The Nutcracker” can be found at uncsa.edu/nutcracker.
This year’s production will feature exciting choreography by talented UNCSA School of Dance faculty member Ilya Kozadayev, an international, award-winning dancer and choreographer. Ballet and contemporary dance students will perform.
“It’s a wonderfully rich and magical production that our UNCSA students will bring to our neighboring Tanger Center,” said Endalyn T. Outlaw, dean of the School of Dance and executive director of “The Nutcracker.” “To be able to showcase their professional-level training in a large-scale venue is truly a gift that we cannot wait to share with the guests.”
An accomplished conductor, Chancellor Brian Cole will conduct the UNCSA Symphony Orchestra for all five performances. Cole, who joined UNCSA as dean of the School of Music in 2016, has led orchestras and operas throughout the United States, Europe, South America and the Caribbean.
Guest artist Penny Jacobus returns as guest lighting designer.
The UNCSA schools of Dance, Design & Production and Music collaborate annually to produce “The Nutcracker.”
The temporary move to the Tanger Center will provide students the unique experience of touring, mounting and performing a production in a 3,000-seat, state-of-the-art venue a short distance from UNCSA. “We are so excited to bring the special UNCSA tradition of ‘The Nutcracker’ to the Tanger Center this year,” said UNCSA Chancellor Cole. “While this temporary move was born out of necessity, it is our great privilege to be able to provide our students with the experience of creating and performing in this fantastic venue, and to reach new audiences in Greensboro and beyond.”
Presented for the first time on Dec. 10, 1966, in Reynolds Auditorium in Winston-Salem, the UNCSA “Nutcracker” production has since been reimagined, recreated and refreshed numerous times.
