Product Details

• Actors: Larissa Lezhnina, Victor Baranov, Piotr Russanov
• Directors: Victor Fedotov
• Format: Classical, Color, Dolby, DVD, NTSC
• Language: Unknown (Dolby Digital 5.1), Unknown (PCM Stereo), English (Dolby Digital 5.1)
• Subtitles: French, English
• Region: All Regions
• Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Philips
• DVD Release Date: December 12, 2000
• Run Time: 101 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000051VS3
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #70,979 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "Tchaikovsky - The Nutcracker" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

41 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Vainonen's Nutcracker in a very lavish staging, December 13, 2004

By 

Ivy Lin (NY NY) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Tchaikovsky - The Nutcracker (DVD)

Vassily Vainonen's Nutcracker choreography was probably as influential in Europe as Balanchines Nutcracker was in the United States. Vainonen omitted the Sugar Plum Fairy altogether and instead made Clara's story a Romantic Awakening. Most European versions of the Nutcracker follow Vainonen's lead, although they may retain the Sugar Plum Faiy. From the Royal Ballet version (available on several videos, the latest with a truly enchanting Alina Cojocaru as Clara) to Grigorivich's dreary Bolshoi production and Nureyev's more surreal one, the Vainonen influence can be found. On the other side of the pond, Baryshnikov's film with Gelsey Kirkland is also based on the Vainonen, although with considerably darker overtones.

The Kirov video is the only tape I know that is actually Vainonen's choreography. Unlike the Bolshoi video with Maximova and Vasiliev, the Kirov's video is blessed with excellent production values. The costumes, sets, and performance are all pretty, sumptuous, and well-organized. I particularly love the Snowflakes scene in the Kirov, with its background of evergreen trees. The Kirov corps is as usual elegant and their use of their upper bodies is a real plus for the ethnic dances in Act 2.
I also like the cast for the Kirov video. A very young, waiflike Larissa Lezhnina is very believable as a teenaged girl. Of the "adult" Clara/Mashas only Gelsey Kirkland and Alina Cojocaru can match Lezhnina's youthful, innocent persona. Merle Park (on the Nureyev video), Ekaterina Maximova (Bolshoi), and Lesley Collier (Royal Ballet) are all way too mature to be believable as a teenager. Viktor Baranov is a very handsome, dashing Prince, who both looks like and dances like a young Mikhail Baryshnikov.

How is the Vainonen choreography? Generally, I like it a lot. The only thing I don't like is the abandonment of the original Sugar Plum Fairy kingdom concept -- in Vainonen's version, Masha and the Prince fall in love and marry in the Kingdom of Sweets. I think there's a way to preserve the Kingdom of the Sweets concept while also preserving a sense of romance between Masha and the Prince. But I think the divertissements are well-choreographed, and the Kirov dances them with the usual elegance and aplomb. I particularly like the Arabian dance in this video. While not as family-friendly as George Balanchine's (no Mother Ginger here!) once you get past the convnetion of adults playing children, I think the choreography is very beautiful, and emphasizes the more romantic aspects of Tchaikovsky's score. I also really liked the choreography for the Waltz of the Flowers -- it seems to mirror actual ballroom waltzing, with couples waltzing away. The effect is sweetly romantic.

That being said, there were a couple things which annoyed me about the video. One is the fact that in the Party scene there's little sense of a real family party. Everything seems a bit too grand, as if this were the Emperor's ball rather than a Christmas gathering. Balanchine's Nutcracker still is the gold standard in setting the tone of a real party. Second of all, there was a decision to have all the "children" danced by adults, and even more strangely, to have all the boys danced by female corps de ballet in long, Beatles-like wigs and pants. The Vaganova Academy has plenty of children, why not use them in the party scene? (And they have real boys too.) Also, the grand pas de deux is really a grand pas de six, with four cavaliers assisting Masha and the Prince. Lezhnina looks pretty being lifted from one cavalier to another, but the piece loses some of its romantic intimacy when there are so many people dancing with Masha in addition to the Prince. I also wonder why Soviet choreographers had to delete so much original Ivanov choreography, such as the Prince's mime, the dance of the hoops and Mother Ginger, things that were lovingly preserved in the Balanchine production.

A Nutcracker as a child's dream fantasy filled with sweets and fun (Balanchine) or a romantic dream of a teenaged girl (Vainonen)? It all depends on what you prefer, I guess. I like both. Unlike the Baryshnikov video there's no darkness here (the Baryshnikov video suggested romantic feelings between Drosselmeyer and Clara). The Kirov has since abandoned the Vainonen version for a darker Nutcracker so I count myself lucky that this is on videotape.

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent traditional Nutcracker, March 22, 2004

By 

Marc Haegeman "Marc Haegeman" (Gent, Belgium) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Tchaikovsky - The Nutcracker (DVD)

With the complete absence of videos from the major Russian ballet companies after 1992/3, this live recording at the Mariinsky Theatre of Vassili Vainonen's "Nutcracker" as danced by the Kirov Ballet in 1993, has now attained the status of treasurable rarity. Headed by that magnificent little jewel Larissa Lezhnina (long since a leading ballerina with the Dutch National Ballet in Amsterdam) and the charming Viktor Baranov, this recording gives a fair idea of this particular production which remains since its creation in 1938 one of Russia's most beloved "Nutcrackers". Part of Vainonen's lasting appeal is his ability to devise a choreography which superbly matches Tchaikovsky's at times monumental musical inspiration. The masterful Waltz of the Snowflakes, the Waltz of the Flowers, and the final Grand Pas de deux are excellent examples of his art.

A remarkable asset of this performance is the presence of the Orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre, conducted by the incomparable Viktor Fedotov, one of the most able ballet conductors of our time.

Good video transfer and excellent digital sound.

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Solid performance with minor weak spots, November 11, 2005

By 

J. Lizzi (Costa Mesa, CA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Tchaikovsky - The Nutcracker (DVD)

This is an enjoyable, straightforward performance of the Nutcracker Ballet, which I'd rate very good overall in terms of dancing, music and video composition. It is important to point out that this version, choreographed by Vasily Vainonen (libretto by Petipa), follows a slightly different storyline that the most common version. In this performance, the Sugar Plum Fairy is absent, and the role of Drosselmeyer (Piotr Russanov) is far more prominent. I won't quibble with which interpretation of the ballet is better than which other one; the story is intact and very recognizable, and a different twist here or there shouldn't keep anyone from enjoying this.

On the positive side, the amazingly clear and bright orchestral music (played before a live audience) was superb, to the point of actually being moving. I'd be pleased with this as a CD. The Kirov dancers all performed admirably, and the lack of any major standout in the cast didn't detract. The pas de deux with Masha (Larissa Lezhnina) and the Prince (Victor Baranov) was very well done. A welcome surprise was the Dance of the Mirlitons, performed by three young and impressively skilled students of the Vaganova Dance School.

On the downside, there were a few instances of image framing that cut the dancers off at the knees, which I consider a faux pas because ballet videography should make every effort to capture a dancer's entire form. The result was some missed footwork. The only glaring annoyance arose during the pas de deux (the highlight, it figures), which was marred by the waving silhouettes of the conductor's hands intruding into the field of view. Unfortunate. Also, the DVD menu is without a chapter selection mode, so that a reference back to the liner notes must be made in order to jump to a specific scene.

All things considered, the few negatives are far outweighed by a fine show. This Nutcracker is likely to please most everyone.