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A decades-old tradition continues as the University of North Carolina School of the Arts presents, “The Nutcracker” Dec. 5-7 at the Tanger Center.
At this time of year, dance companies the world over put on the Tchaikovsky ballet, which premiered in 1892. UNCSA students first performed it in the Triad on Dec. 10, 1966.
“Certainly ‘Nutcracker’ is one of those iconic works. It’s a classic work,” said Endalyn T. Outlaw, UNCSA dean of dance. “It’s something that is so full of tradition from the industry standpoint but also from a family standpoint.”
The two-act ballet, through which many youngsters are introduced to the dance form, is set on Christmas Eve. It tells the story of young Clara, who is given a nutcracker that magically comes to life.
One of UNCSA’s own returns to lead the orchestra this year. Mexican conductor Felipe Tristán, a 2011 graduate, has worked with symphonies and dance companies around the world.
“My years at UNCSA were truly exceptional and foundational,” he said in a news release. “The training I received there taught me not only musical discipline and artistic integrity, but also the spirit of collaboration and creativity that still guides my work today. Conducting ‘The Nutcracker’ feels like returning home.”
The sense of community surrounding UNCSA’s “The Nutcracker” is important to Outlaw, a former principal dancer with the Dance Theater of Harlem. She noted that many UNCSA students have been part of Nutcracker productions from as young as age eight - when they were part of the school’s preparatory program - through their high school and undergraduate years, progressing to more and more prominent roles.
“Every ballet student in our program [is] a part of ‘The Nutcracker,’” said Outlaw, who instituted that policy after coming to UNCSA in 2021.
“Fortunately, we have an amazing faculty member who is the choreographer for our ‘Nutcracker,’” she said of Ilya Kozodayev. “He is a brilliant teacher and he is a masterful choreographer who took the request and the desire and really made it work, adding a few dancers to some of the corps roles, like the snow scene.
“He very cleverly kept the integrity of the work while giving more opportunities to more students.” Multiple casts, including some contemporary dance students, will perform during the ballet’s run.
But dancers aren’t the only students who will bring the classic to life at Tanger. Showgoers also will enjoy the work of “students from the school of music making up the symphony orchestra, and then students from design and production under the mentorship of faculty and outside technicians do the behind-the-scenes stage management, props, wigs, makeup, those things,” said Outlaw.
“So it really is a rite of passage, it really is about community, and particularly our ‘Nutcracker’ being so professional and polished although it is fully student-centric.
“I think that it’s very special for our students that they can say that they’ve already performed at the Tanger Center and that’s something that will forever live on their resumes,” she added.
Those who attend the ballet have an opportunity to see future dance stars while enjoying a holiday tradition. Outlaw hopes they won’t come alone.
“Coming to our ‘Nutcracker’ is something that should be shared with someone else,” she said. “Bring a family member - younger, older, it doesn’t matter. Bring a neighbor. It’s so in keeping with the time of year. It’s filled with joy, it is filled with a sense of magic and celebration that should be shared.”
