A ballet outing for the first time in ages, just in time for Christmas! The timing happened to line up with a trip to Tokyo, so I went to see K-BALLET TOKYO’s The Nutcracker. I love ballet, but somehow I rarely manage to go. The Nutcracker at this time of year really is something special. As always, today was the best.
What Is Kumakawa’s Nutcracker?
K-BALLET TOKYO’s The Nutcracker is an annual winter production, directed and choreographed by Tetsuya Kumakawa. The venue is Bunkamura Orchard Hall in Shibuya, Tokyo.
The Nutcracker / Prince that day was danced by guest artist Julian MacKay, a principal of the Bavarian State Ballet. Princess Marie was danced by Sena Hidaka, and Clara by Nao Umeki.
Two Thrilling Hours from a Second-Floor Side Seat
My seat was on the second floor, on the house-right side, looking down on the stage at an angle.
I actually did ballet myself when I was younger, so every single scene of The Nutcracker is a thrill for me. Well, that’s just the kind of ballet The Nutcracker is, isn’t it?
What really gets me going is the moment the variations begin in Act 2. The Chinese dance, the Russian dance… each one packs so much character into such a short piece. That’s when the “oh, I love this” feeling hits.
And a live orchestra really is wonderful. Tchaikovsky’s music is so beautiful I could happily go just to listen to it. Watching ballet with a live orchestra is such a luxury.
Silver Streamers at the Curtain Call!
After the performance, silver streamers shot out with a bang at the curtain call. What a surprise! I have a feeling there was a “see you next year” sort of greeting too, though my memory is hazy, and the whole auditorium was wrapped in a festive, celebratory mood. A warm finale, fitting for an annual tradition.
Final Thoughts
I love ballet, but unlike kabuki it isn’t performed every day, so finding the right moment is always tricky. Incidentally, the last ballet I saw before this was the Royal Ballet’s Romeo and Juliet on their Japan tour. Fumi Kaneko’s Juliet was so lovely and absolutely wonderful.
I wonder when I’ll next get to go. The Nutcracker is the kind of ballet that makes you want to meet it again next Christmas.
