December 6, 13, 14, 15, 2024 at 7:30 pm
December 7, 8, 14, 15, 2024 at 2:00 pm
December 12, 2024 at 4:00 pm
The Rebecca Cohn Auditorium, Halifax
Presented by Lord Nelson Hotel & Suites
Presented by Symphony Nova Scotia, Halifax Dance, and Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia
Conducted by Greg Burton
Choreography by Leica Hardy
Original story by E.T.A. Hoffmann
Original story adaptation and direction by Leica Hardy and Graham Whitehead
The Nutcracker
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)
ACT I
As the curtain opens, Clara, the only girl in the dormitory with no home to go to for the holidays, sits hugging her doll Emily for comfort. During the bustle and tension of departure, her sadness is forgotten for a while, and when her friends realize she is alone, with no one to give her gifts, they find what they can among their possessions. Clara, left on her own, falls asleep and her private adventures begin.
SCENE I – PROLOGUE
The Janitor – Sébastien Labelle
Fraulein Lotte Drosselmeyer – Rebecca Wolfe
Fraulein Sophia Drosselmeyer – Amy Reitsma
A Little Mouse – Laura Keyes** or Aria Pile*
OVERTURE
SCENE II – THE DORMITORY
Clara – Giovanna Lamboglia
The Schoolgirls – Luna Artalejo, Maeve Boyne, Isabella Brennan, Alice Gunn, Nev Holland, Ekaterina Loginov
Frieda, the Class Bully – Kennedy Pye
SCENE III – THE BATTLE OF THE MOUSE QUEEN AND THE NUTCRACKER
The Mouse Queen – Kennedy Pye
The Nutcracker Prince – Thiago Dos Santos
Emily, the Rag Doll – Ivy MacLellan
The Scouting Party – Fiona Foot**, Lauren Foot**, Laura Keyes**, Molly MacLellan*, Aria Pile*, Isla Rovers*
The Army – Freya Archibald*, Luna Artalejo, Naomi Chaulk**, Annika Deacoff**, Ella Faddoul*, Fiona Foot**, Lauren Foot**, Charis Greeley**, Nev Holland, Julia Keyes, Laura Keyes**, Elsa Larson, Molly MacLellan*, Victoria Moore*, Audrey Napier, Sahara Nyathi, Aria Pile*, Isla Rovers*
SCENE IV – THE LAND OF SNOW
The Spirit of Winter – Michael Kamras with Sophie Connick and Maddy Jones-Kenyon
The Snow Maidens – Natalie Bent, Maeve Boyne, Isabella Brennan, Alice Gunn, Kaitlyn Heerema, Olivia Holmes, Ekaterina Loginov, Elena Mason, Valeriia Shevchenko
The Skating Party – Rebecca Wolfe with Olivia Charbonneau, Isabella Down*, Caroline Hindle**, Lily MacDonald**, Julie MacIntyre**, Sienna Nyathi*, Mandy Tang*
INTERMISSION : 20 MINUTES
ACT II
As Clara dreams, her imagination continues to change the everyday into the fantastic, the worn out and shabby into the gorgeous and elegant. Fan, flower, lantern, doll, even the candy cane and the snake are transformed and given new life. Clara summons her companions to help her celebrate a world full of friendship and delight. Even though there comes a time for the fantasy to end, her dream leaves her with a new hope and maybe, just maybe, something unexpected.
OVERTURE
SCENE I – IN THE PALACE OF THE RAG DOLL QUEEN
Emily, the Rag Doll Queen – Ivy MacLellan
THE WELCOME AND CELEBRATION OF THE GIFTS
The Fan
The Dancer – Isabelle Brennan
The Bullfighters – Luna Artalejo, Maeve Boyne, Alice Gunn, Sahara Nyathi
Frieda’s Gift
The Snake – Elsa Larson with Caroline Hindle, Elena Mason, Sienna Nyathi
The Lantern
The Lantern Dancer – Ekaterina Loginov
The Lion – Maeve Boyne, Isabella Down, Nev Holland
The Ribbon Dancers – Lily Macdonald, Julie MacIntyre, Audrey Napier, Mandy Tang
The Dancing Doll
Sasha – Luna Artalejo, Natalie Bent, Olivia Holmes, Julia Keyes, Elsa Larson
The Candy Cane
The Shepherdesses – Valeriia Shevchenko with Kaitlyn Heerema and Ekaterina Loginov
Their Sheep – Olivia Charbonneau, Sophie Connick, Maddy Jones-Kenyon
Mother Ginger’s Arrival
Mother Ginger – Rebecca Wolfe
The Children – Freya Archibald*, Naomi Chaulk**, Annika Deacoff**, Ella Faddoul*, Fiona Foot**, Lauren Foot**, Charis Greeley**, Laura Keyes**, Molly MacLellan*, Victoria Moore*, Aria Pile*, Isla Rovers*
THE CELEBRATION CONTINUES
Waltz of the Flowers
The Flowers – Natalie Bent, Alice Gunn, Nev Holland
The Dancers – Luna Artalejo, Maeve Boyne, Isabella Brennan, Kaitlyn Heerema, Olivia Holmes, Julia Keyes, Ekaterina Loginov, Kennedy Pye, Valeriia Shevchenko
The Garland Dancers – Olivia Charbonneau**, Sophie Connick**, Isabella Down*, Caroline Hindle**, Elsa Larson**, Lily MacDonald**, Julie MacIntyre**, Elena Mason*, Audrey Napier*, Sahara Nyathi*, Sienna Nyathi*, Mandy Tang*
The Children – Freya Archibald*, Naomi Chaulk**, Annika Deacoff**, Ella Faddoul*, Fiona Foot**, Lauren Foot**, Charis Greeley**, Laura Keyes**, Molly MacLellan*, Victoria Moore*, Aria Pile*, Isla Rovers*
The Dance of the Nutcracker Prince
Clara’s Dance of Delight
The Dream Fades
The Farewell
SCENE II – CLARA AWAKENS IN THE DORMITORY
*Dec. 6 (7:30), Dec. 8 (2:00), Dec. 12 (4:00), Dec. 14 (2:00), Dec. 15 (2:00)
**Dec. 7 (2:00), Dec. 13 (7:30), Dec. 14 (7:30), Dec. 15 (7:30)
