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Tchaikovsky - The Nutcracker

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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.

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.

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.

This production of Tchaikovsky's evergreen ballet "Nutcracker" is very fine, but I have some reservations about the camera work. This is a wide screen production, and having a small (13 inch) television makes it difficult to watch, as many shots are taken from a distance to see the dancers on stage interacting with each other, and in a counterpoint to one another - the architecture as a whole. I suppose the answer would be to buy a larger TV set, but this is hardly cost effective to playback of one DVD...

That said, the Kirov orchestra plays very well under conductor Fedotov, and the precision of the dancers is very engaging, especially in Act 1. I was impressed and intrigued with the dancing of Herr Drosselmeyer. The "Dance of the Snowflakes" and "Waltz of the Flowers" are beautiful and very moving. However, in Act 2, tempos seem really slow, especially in the "Dance des Mirlitons" and the omission of "Mere Gigone and the Clowns " (The old woman who lived in a shoe) seems curious to me: it's one of my favorite pieces from "Nutcracker" and I was disappointed not to see/hear it in this production.

Still, the sound is top notch digital, warm and enveloping, and it would sound terrific on Surround Sound systems. There is much to enjoy here, and I recommend this DVD with a few reservations.

Every time I play this DVD the orchestra seems to play better than the previous time. The winds are just amazing. On the other hand, the choreography, by Vasily Vainonen, is excellent, and Lezhnina and Baranov are superb in the main roles.

The only drawback of this DVD is its "below average" picture quality, which may be somewhat improved by watching it in "cinema mode" (if bright colors are enhanced, then the figures acquire a ghost or shadow). But the quality of the performance more than makes up for this drawback. Recommended.

There are folks in my town who have no idea what "The Nutcracker" is all about, nor do they know that there is even a ballet called "The Nutcracker". For that matter, some do not know what a ballet is. The largest metropolis, Atlanta, Ga., is a two and one half hour drive from where I live. So, it isn't too surprising to hear the word "No" when asking, "have you ever seen The Nutcracker"? You probably know something about the story, since you are reading this review, but may not know about THIS version. A few things you WON'T find in this version: 1) A beautiful green Christmas tree in the Stahlbaum parlor. Instead there is a modernistic paper caricature of a tree, which later turns into a green tree and grows dimensionally. 2) Boys aggravating the girls. They are played by all girls. 3) A handsome wooden Nutcracker. Instead it is a quite ugly rag-doll. 4) Boy solders fighting the mice. They are all girls. It's OK, I love girls. 5) Computer animation. 6) Mother Gigogne and her Little Clowns 7) The Sugar-Plum Fairy. But, Masha (beautiful Larissa Lezhnina) dances her variation to the music "The Dance of the Sugar-Plum Fairy", so you are not going to miss that beautiful music, played on the celesta. An instrument heard by the public for the first time in the "Nutcracker Suite", before the ballet was ever performed on stage. The ballet was so long in rehearsal that Tchaikovsky was afraid someone else would get wind of the new instrument (celesta) and introduce it to the public before he did. So, he arranged a suite of the best tunes from his score, and they were performed before the ballet.

Something you WILL find in this version is the Dance of The Mirlitons (sometimes called Dance of the Reed Pipes) by three very remarkable, and adorable, children from the Vaganova (Va-GONE-ova) Dance Academy (where Balanchine, Nureyev, and Baryshnikov got their early training). Some reviewers are complaining about the tempo of the music in this "Nutcracker". The "children" mentioned above, would naturally need a slower tempo to match their experience. I'm sure Mr. Fedotov, the conductor, is experienced enough to know how to pace an orchestra for the particular dancers on the stage. The names of the children are, Tatiana Miltseva, Elena Chmil, and Artem Pykhachev. They are also featured on another DVD by the Kirov Ballet, "Essential Ballet", which can be found in the three ballet set by the Kirov Ballet entitled "The magic of Russian Ballet" (which also includes this Nutcracker, and Firebird, Petrushka, and Scheherazade).......The Magic of Russian Ballet / The Nutcracker, Return of the Firebird, Petrushka, Scheherazade, Essential Ballet, Kirov Ballet........Each ballet is available separately including Essential Ballet. Oh, and one other thing you will get, is a nice booklet where I got some of this information.

The sets and costumes are sumptuous but on the pink side of pink. Whoever did the sets and lighting AND costumes loved pink. It's everywhere. Even the DVD keepcase is pink. This is a live production from the famous Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg. Excellent sound quality, and audience participation. I believe you will like this example of classical ballet.

One other thing I would like to advise you of, DON'T believe everything you read in these reviews. Remember, these are personal (debatable) opinions, including this one. I do hope you learn something from this review, and that you find it useful...........Richard....email me.

The content of the DVD was amazing, but the only flaw was that I could not play it on my computer which has DVD playing capability (Sound was coming out but had static-ish display). Could only play from a DVD player connected to TV.

The sets are gorgeous, music and sound is fantastic, the costumes are very well done overall, although I agree with the other criticism of the Nutcracker looking ugly and not like a nutcracker at all. True, the children were all played by adults, and the boys were played by girls, it was a little distracting, but not a huge problem for me. You can see the orchestra director's hands waving around sometimes, but it made me smile and reminded me that - after all - it was performed live.
My problem was that so much of the dancing seemed to drag, as though they struggled or had no power behind the movements. The main performances were fine enough, but not very moving. There was little emotion from the dancers' faces to pull me in or make me feel, and they generally seemed lethargic, although it was probably due more to the choreography, than the dancers' abilities.
I would not recommend this version, and if I had watched it first, I would not have bought it. I prefer the dancing from the super-70's version with Baryshikov to this.

Overall, gorgeous sets, lovely costumes generally, wonderful orchestra and sound with live audience.
But strange lighting issues that were dim and pinkish was distracting, the dancing lacked power and emotion for me.

Great video of a beautiful traditional Nutcracker. I will enjoy watching it over and over again during the next few months right up to Christmas.

I regard this version the best by far of all Nutcrackers. It makes clear that the ballet is about a young girl's awakening to sex. The phallic Christmas tree that enlarges and rises, the battle with the "dirty" mice who represent her fears of sexuality, and the overcoming of them via the love of a faithful prince who helps her to conquer them and send them fleeing, are all spot on. Most versions don't get or convey the sexual meaning of the ballet, but rather turn it into a anodine children's story with toys. Lezhina is marvelous, so sure in every movement, and with such energy. The way she bounds across the stage in the love duet and jumps into Baranov's arms is bravura ballet at its best. The whole thing is near perfect. Just---one is sure---as Tchaikovsy intended it.