This afternoon, my mom, my brother, his girlfriend and I all went to Akron to see "The Nutcracker" ballet performed in the spectacular historic Akron Civic Theatre by the Ballet Theatre of Ohio, a youth ballet company. They do this every year and it's always so charmingly done and this year was no exception. Our seats were up in the nosebleed section of the theatre, so knowing this ahead of time, I brought a small set of binoculars that I received as a 20th anniversary gift from my employer, the Akron-Summit County Public Library. They are small enough to fit in my purse but powerful enough to where, watching the ballet through them, I could see each and every detail on stage. It almost felt like I was sitting in the front row. Everything about the production was exquisite, from the sets to the costumes to the dancing. I've loved this ballet since seeing it on television when I was very little, possibly danced by Rudolf Nureyev (or was it Edward Vilella?) and I do not remember who played "Clara". I just remember being awed by the beauty of it all and how the dancers seemed to defy gravity with their athletic jumps and leaps. I remember leaping all over the furniture after seeing it, thinking that I, too, could do what they had done on TV. If I imagined hard enough, I felt like I could leap as high as they could. It was thrilling, and I have no doubt that all the little girls in the audience who were dressed in their holiday best, with lots of velvets and satins to be seen, are going to bed tonight dreaming of being ballerinas or princesses or both.
The Akron Civic Theatre, where the performance took place, is one of those rare old gems that used to be a movie theatre back when it opened in 1929 as a Loew's Theatre. It has twinkling stars and moving clouds in the ceiling to add to the spectacular interior that is supposed to be a sort of Moorish design. It's really beautiful inside and the perfect magical place to hold a performance of a ballet like "The Nutcracker". It has, in recent past, nearly closed its doors several times due to lack of funding even though it was massively renovated not long ago. It has struggled for some time now but programs like this ballet are always popular and well attended. They've hosted Garrison Keillor's "A Prairie Home Companion", which was no doubt well attended also (I wish I had gone when they were there!). Every year they have another popular holiday attraction, "A Tuba Christmas", where tuba players all come together to play Christmas music. I've never gone to this but it sure sounds like a lot of fun. My mom's friend Helen Welch, a pop/jazz singer, also has a very popular Christmas program coming up soon that we've gone to despite it being mainly attended by what my mom calls "geezers", since it's mostly music they would remember. Still, it is just a great place to attend any sort of arts performance, be it a concert or a ballet or even an opera (my mom and I saw the opera "Carmen" there several years ago and it was really fantastic!). Just the atmosphere alone makes it so worth going there to see a performance. They just don't make places like that anymore and far too many have fallen to the wrecking ball in the past few decades. Akron's Civic is a rare gem that needs to be preserved, since it's one of only a handful of such theatres left in the country still standing and in regular use. It also boasts a "Mighty Wurlitzer" organ like they used to play during silent films. What a great asset for Akron to have right downtown and it was heartening this afternoon to see such a good crowd turn out for a cultural event that appeals to all ages. I never tire of seeing this ballet performed, no matter how many times I've seen it before. It always helps me to feel that holiday magic hearing that familiar music by Tchaikovsky and seeing the beautiful dancing that it accompanies. What a truly magical holiday classic!
This afternoon, my mom, my brother, his girlfriend and I all went to Akron to see "The Nutcracker" ballet performed in the spectacular historic Akron Civic Theatre by the Ballet Theatre of Ohio, a youth ballet company. They do this every year and it's always so charmingly done and this year was no exception. Our seats were up in the nosebleed section of the theatre, so knowing this ahead of time, I brought a small set of binoculars that I received as a 20th anniversary gift from my employer, the Akron-Summit County Public Library. They are small enough to fit in my purse but powerful enough to where, watching the ballet through them, I could see each and every detail on stage. It almost felt like I was sitting in the front row. Everything about the production was exquisite, from the sets to the costumes to the dancing. I've loved this ballet since seeing it on television when I was very little, possibly danced by Rudolf Nureyev (or was it Edward Vilella?) and I do not remember who played "Clara". I just remember being awed by the beauty of it all and how the dancers seemed to defy gravity with their athletic jumps and leaps. I remember leaping all over the furniture after seeing it, thinking that I, too, could do what they had done on TV. If I imagined hard enough, I felt like I could leap as high as they could. It was thrilling, and I have no doubt that all the little girls in the audience who were dressed in their holiday best, with lots of velvets and satins to be seen, are going to bed tonight dreaming of being ballerinas or princesses or both.
The Akron Civic Theatre, where the performance took place, is one of those rare old gems that used to be a movie theatre back when it opened in 1929 as a Loew's Theatre. It has twinkling stars and moving clouds in the ceiling to add to the spectacular interior that is supposed to be a sort of Moorish design. It's really beautiful inside and the perfect magical place to hold a performance of a ballet like "The Nutcracker". It has, in recent past, nearly closed its doors several times due to lack of funding even though it was massively renovated not long ago. It has struggled for some time now but programs like this ballet are always popular and well attended. They've hosted Garrison Keillor's "A Prairie Home Companion", which was no doubt well attended also (I wish I had gone when they were there!). Every year they have another popular holiday attraction, "A Tuba Christmas", where tuba players all come together to play Christmas music. I've never gone to this but it sure sounds like a lot of fun. My mom's friend Helen Welch, a pop/jazz singer, also has a very popular Christmas program coming up soon that we've gone to despite it being mainly attended by what my mom calls "geezers", since it's mostly music they would remember. Still, it is just a great place to attend any sort of arts performance, be it a concert or a ballet or even an opera (my mom and I saw the opera "Carmen" there several years ago and it was really fantastic!). Just the atmosphere alone makes it so worth going there to see a performance. They just don't make places like that anymore and far too many have fallen to the wrecking ball in the past few decades. Akron's Civic is a rare gem that needs to be preserved, since it's one of only a handful of such theatres left in the country still standing and in regular use. It also boasts a "Mighty Wurlitzer" organ like they used to play during silent films. What a great asset for Akron to have right downtown and it was heartening this afternoon to see such a good crowd turn out for a cultural event that appeals to all ages. I never tire of seeing this ballet performed, no matter how many times I've seen it before. It always helps me to feel that holiday magic hearing that familiar music by Tchaikovsky and seeing the beautiful dancing that it accompanies. What a truly magical holiday classic!
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