Nutcracker - What to know
Hello everyone! I'm excited about our field trip to the Dr. Phillips Center for the 12:30 PM performance of the Nutcracker!
A few important reminders:
Parking info can be found here. I park in the City Commons garage. I believe the parking charge is $13. There is no valet parking available for this morning showtime.
Please meet at the Dr. Phillips Center at 11:45 AM. I plan to be right outside the entry doors, to the left as you face the front doors. You will need to find me and check-in with me.
I am thrilled that 75 people purchased tickets as part of our Cheyne Ranch group. I voluntarily coordinated this as a community outing for Cheyne Ranch. Please be patient and be kind with everyone.
There are NO tickets or seat assignments for this event, the ushers will lead us to our section of seats once our group is present. If you arrive late, please let them know you are with Cheyne Ranch.
A few people have asked me what I'm wearing As this is a midday theater event aimed at schools and community organizations, I will be wearing my Cheyne Ranch "uniform" which is jeans and a Cheyne Ranch t-shirt, and my nonwork boots! You are free to dress as nicely or casually as you want.
A few interesting notes about the performance:
This is a field trip performance (45 minutes), meaning it is shorter than the full Nutcracker ballet (2+ hours). The actual performance will be from 12:30 - 1:15 PM
Last year, the field trip performance was Act 1. This year, the field trip performance is Act 2. When I was watching the full performance this past weekend, I was fascinated by how this field trip is going to open up.
Will it just open with Act 2? If so, here is some brief context:
Composer: Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (Russian)
Setting: early 1800's, Germany, home of a wealthy family on Christmas eve
Notes: Tchaikovsky is a Russian composer who adapted the story by German writer E.T.A. Hoffman, "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King." So the music and (traditional) ballet choreography is Russian, and the story with its cultural references are German.
Act 1: A family (mom, dad, older brother in soldier's uniform, and young daughter Clara) host a Christmas eve party with dancing, laughter and gift giving. Among the guests is the eccentric Uncle Drosselmeyer (toy maker), who arrives bearing magical gifts. He presents Clara with a wooden Nutcracker, which she treasures. As the party winds down, Clara falls asleep, dreaming that the Nutcracker transforms into a handsome prince and leads her into a magical battle against the Mouse King and his army.
In this Orlando Ballet version, the battle between the Mouse King and the Nutcracker is triumphant when Clara! saves the Nutcracker by using a candy cane to guide the rat king into a cage. This detail is "reenacted" during Act 2 when Clara is retelling the story of the battle to other magical friends.
Act 2: (as summarized by Gemini - google AI)
The Nutcracker transports Clara to the magical Land of Sweets, a realm of pure enchantment. Here, she is greeted by the Sugar Plum Fairy and her court. The Land of Sweets is a place where each dance represents a different country and its unique culture.
The audience is treated to a dazzling array of dances, including the Spanish Dance (Chocolate), the Arabian Dance (Coffee), the Chinese Dance (Tea), the Russian Trepak (Candy Canes), and the Dance of the Reed Flutes (Marzipan). One particularly entertaining dance features Mother Ginger, a giant gingerbread figure, who opens her skirt to reveal a troupe of mischievous Polichinelle dancers. These comical characters, often dressed in colorful costumes, add a playful and humorous element to the grand spectacle. <----- Grace Cheyne is one of the Polichinelle dancers - and the dancers don't come out of Mother Ginger's skirt, instead in this version, Mother Ginger is a giant goose and the dancers are around it.
The grand finale of Act 2 is the enchanting Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy, a breathtaking performance that showcases the technical brilliance and artistic beauty of classical ballet. As the curtain falls, the audience is left with a sense of wonder and the enduring magic of the holiday season.
One more fascinating note for those of you who read all my endless words...
The Dr. Phillips Center has 3!! theaters. and if you have seen a Broadway type show, those musical theater productions are in the bigger Walt Disney theater. We will be in the beautiful Steinmetz Hall, which only opened 3 years ago and was built especially for ballet and opera. I love this theater, it feels smaller, and every seat is a good seat.
Thank you all for being part of what makes this community great! Please let me know if you have any questions. I look forward to seeing you all soon!
Sally Ann Cheyne
Founder & President
Cheyne Ranch, Inc.
nonprofit 501(c)(3)
Located in Oviedo, FL
Call / Text: (407) 205-7744
email: Sally@CheyneRanch.com
Website: www.CheyneRanch.com
Facebook: facebook.com/CheyneRanch
Instagram: instagram.com/CheyneRanch
Cheyne Ranch is a nonprofit that provides a safe, inclusive and accessible way for people of all abilities to learn about animal care & connections.
We serve our local community through providing scholarships to our lesson programs, caring for the many farm animals that have been donated to us, and advocating for inclusive, accessible experiences for all individuals.
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