the broken typewriter

A Christmas party. A toymaker uncle. A magical gift that comes to life and takes a young girl on a festive Christmas journey that takes some interesting twists and turns, told through the beauty of ballet.

From a battle between mice and toy soldiers, to a journey through the Land of Snow with dancing snowflakes, and a grand celebration hosted by the Sugar Plum Fairy, featuring a variety of sweets from around the world, Stage North Theatre Society, Studio 2 Stage Dance Academy and Northern Dance Theatre Society have brought The Nutcracker back for the seventh time.

Dancers from Fort St. John, Grande Prairie and Dawson Creek auditioned for roles in the biennial production, resulting in a cast of 76 dancers, the largest cast ever, Creative Director and Studio 2 Stage owner Shauna Milne told the broken typewriter at the Nutcracker’s Wednesday dress rehearsal.

After working with Stage North on a Midsummer Night’s Dream, Milne thought The Nutcracker would be a good tradition to try to start.

“I thought it was good community event to make accessible to the community.”

What started out as a small production in 2012 has grown in popularity both as a Christmas show and an opportunity for dancers, as shown by Milne’s creation of new roles and expanding the sizes of the groups on stage.

The Waltz of the Snowflakes in the Land of Snow now has two groups of dancers, with the Snow dancing en pointe, and the younger Snowflakes dancing around them. In the Kingdom of Sweets, the Chinese (Tea) Dance has grown from two dancers in 2018’s production to seven this year. Similarly, the Waltz of the Flowers now has Flowers and Flower Buds, to accommodate the growing number of dancers enchanted by the story of the Nutcracker and their desire to help bring it to life on a local stage.

“This year we’ve added more fairies, so we have six new fairies,” said Milne. “The pool of dancers was pretty large this year – we had 80-some kids try out and ended up 76. It’s over 80 on stage when you include the adults.”

In addition to extra dancer roles to accommodate everyone who is interested in taking part, the sets have also evolved over the years.

“We’ve added new props. We’ve added cannons, some pyrotechnics, the snow keeps getting better, and our special effects.”

More lighting has been added, along with fog during the Angels’ dance, and a projector for different backdrops.

The production is anchored by Stage North performers who reprise the same roles every two years, Uncle Drosslemeyer (Oliver Hachmeister), Clara’s father/Mouse King (Kevin Smith), and Clara’s mother/Queen of Sweets (Amy LaHay).

The main characters of Clara (Temperance & Macey), Sugar Plum Fairy (Emily & Kenlee) and the Nutcracker (Sebastian) are played by senior Northern Dance Theatre Society dancers who have been in The Nutcracker since they were just starting out in dance.

Kenlee who plays Sugar Plum Fairy started out as a Mouse and a Clown, Emily who also plays Sugar Plum Fairy started as an Angel and a Snow; Temperance and Macey who play Clara, were also once two of the Mouse King’s mice, while Macey was a Clown as well. Sebastian, who has played the Nutcracker the last two times Nutcracker has been performed began as one of the horses pulling the sleigh.

What keeps them coming back year after year to dance the Nutcracker at Christmas?

“It’s just really magical,” Kenlee said. Emily likes dancing with all her friends, and Temperance likes spending Christmas on stage.

Sebastian, who is the only male dancer who has played the Nutcracker since Milne started putting on the ballet, says that it has become a tradition for him now.

Macey summed it up as being “a lot of fun.”

Overall, the dancers describe the whole experience of being in the Nutcracker as both fun and magical, while finding the school shows particularly enjoyable.

“I like the magic,” Emily (Sugar Plum Fairy) said. “And I think the kids like to see their friends in it, or they’ll see people they know and think it’s so cool.”

Sebastian likes to see the kids’ reactions to the battle scene, especially when the Nutcracker dies and comes back, after dispatching the Mouse King.

“They’re always screaming, no he’s dead, he’s dead.” But he is magical and comes back to life.

Keep your ears peeled during the Snow scene, as the Northern Lights Choral Society provides the music, their voices adding to the beauty of the event.

In addition to the evening shows and Thursday school shows, Milne says there will be two matinees, the one on Saturday will be an inclusive excerpts performance – only an hour long – with the house lights up, the music isn’t so loud, and the audience can walk around if they need to.

Show times: Friday Dec 19 @7:30 p.m.; Saturday Dec 20 – Excerpts from The Nutcracker @2 p.m., and Full Show @7:30 p.m.; Sunday Dec 21 Matinee @2 p.m., Final Show @7:30 p.m.

Tickets for full shows are $30 for adults, $25 for students and seniors, children under 12 $20; Tickets for the Saturday Excerpts Matinee are $20.

Tickets can be purchased in person at the Box Office or online.