The Nutcracker ballet starts Christmas season in HCM City
Dancers of the HCM City Ballet Symphony Orchestra and Opera (HBSO) will launch the Christmas season with the classical ballet The Nutcracker, a two-act production choreographed by Johanne Jakhelln Constant, art director of the Moving Art Theatre in Bodo, Norway, on December 11 and 12.
The work is based on the story The Nutcracker and the Mouse King by German author E.T.A. Hoffmann.
It features the dream of the little girl Clara and her adventures with a nutcracker, a gift from her godfather.
It was first presented at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia on December 17, 1892, and has become a worldwide favourite during the Christmas season.
It premiered in HCM City in 2001 as part of the Norway government's Transposition programme to bring classical music projects to Vietnam.
This season, it will be staged by dancers of HBSO, including Ho Phi Diep (the Nutcracker), Nguyen Thu Trang (Clara), Do Hoang Khang Ninh (Sugarplum Fairy) and Dang Minh Hien (Mr Drosselmeyer).
Japanese dancer Yuki Hiroshige will play the role of Snow Queen and Dewdrop.
The play’s choreographer Johanne has also worked in costume design, scenography and props design.
The Nutcracker, with music by Tchaikovsky, will highlight the HBSO symphony orchestra and female choir led by conductor Tran Vuong Thach.
Meritorious Artist Thach, director of the HBSO, was recently granted the title Knight of Arts and Letters (Chevaliers des Lettres et des Arts) from the French government for his efforts to promote arts exchange between Vietnam and France.