\nThis year, the current production, created by former artistic director Victoria Morgan in 2011, becomes the company\u2019s longest-running \u201cNutcracker\u201d production. The runner-up? The original show, created by Roman Jasinski, Moscelyne Larkin and Frederic Franklin, which ran for 13 years.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\nMorgan\u2019s version is filled with humorous quirks, including a dancing version of the zoo\u2019s much-loved hippo, Fiona. There\u2019s also a quintet of dancing poodles named Lollipups. They used to be called the Mirlipoos, a nod to the Mirlitons \u2013 French flutes \u2013 of the original ballet. Each year brings new twists to the ballet.<\/p>\n<\/p>\nBut the biggest change this year is in the orchestra pit rather than on the stage. The company is introducing a new music director. That may not sound like an enormous deal. But you have to remember that in the course of its 62-year history, Cincinnati has had just one music director \u2013 maestro Carmon DeLeone.<\/p>\n
When \u201cThe Nutcracker\u201d opens at Music Hall on Dec. 18, Cincinnati Ballet audiences will meet the newcomer, Alyssa Wang. Don\u2019t be deceived by her young age \u2013 she\u2019s just 31. She brings a wealth of experience to the job. She was assistant conductor of the Boston Ballet for several years, is the current music director of the Cape Symphony and is founder and principal conductor of the Boston Festival Orchestra.<\/p>\n\nShe\u2019s spent several weeks in on rehearsals, familiarizing herself with the choreography and the dancers\u2019 individual performing styles. Though we won\u2019t have a chance to see her until the Music Hall opening, she actually made her company debut when the Cincinnati Ballet performed \u201cThe Nutcracker\u201d at the Kennedy Center over Thanksgiving weekend.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n\u201cThe Kennedy Center has a wonderful orchestra, so it was very a gratifying musical experience,\u201d she said. \u201cBut I have to admit that it was a little nerve-wracking leading up to the performances. It was my first time conducting this \u2018Nutcracker,\u2019 my first time conducting for Cincinnati Ballet and I was working with an orchestra I had never conducted before.\u201d<\/p>\n\nIt\u2019s hard to overstate the importance of the music director to a ballet company. The music director is as vital an element as the dancers themselves. For instance, when you watch a pas de deux \u2013 a dance for two dancers \u2013 that conductor might as well be a third character on the stage.<\/p>\n
Joseph Dlearo is new to Cincinnati Ballet. But he\u2019s an old hand when it comes to \u201cNutcracker\u201d productions. This is his fifth professional production, each one of them with a different conductor.<\/p>\n\n\u201cI\u2019ve had experiences where you\u2019re out on the stage and the music is twice as slow as you\u2019re expecting,\u201d he said. \u201cYou have to stretch out every movement as far as possible. I\u2019ve also had the other extreme, where the music is so fast that you can barely keep up with it.”<\/p>\n
<\/p>\nHe\u2019s only had a few performances with Wang in the pit, but so far, he says, working with her \u201chas been an absolute dream,\u201d he said. \u201cShe\u2019s been so much more involved than a lot of music directors I\u2019ve known.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tempo is just one aspect of the job. Consistency is vital, too. And understanding the timing of various elements on the stage. In Morgan\u2019s production, the character of Dr. Drosselmeyer \u201cflies\u201d during the battle between the mice and the toy soldiers.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s is new to me,\u201d Wang said. \u201cI am not used to characters flying. So how do I time this person hanging above the stage on this wire? I guess I\u2019ll find out soon enough.\u201d<\/p>\n\nFor the record, the Drosselmeyer character did not <\/em>fly when the company was at the Kennedy Center. So Music Hall will be a first.<\/p>\n\n\u201cIt\u2019s like any new job,\u201d Wang said. \u201cYou have all the necessary skills, but you\u2019re in a new environment with new people. There are always differences. In this case, I have to learn the new choreography, but I have to learn about the new dancers, as well. What does each dancer tend to like? How do their bodies move? Each dancer has a different approach to each role. When I\u2019m in the pit, I have to be confident that I know what they need. And they have to be confident that I know.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\nWang is delighted to be starting her Cincinnati Ballet career with \u201cThe Nutcracker.\u201d Certainly, it\u2019s a staple of the ballet repertory, but it\u2019s more than that.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think \u2018The Nutcracker\u2019 is probably the best thing Tchaikovsky ever wrote,\u201d Wang said. \u201cI\u2019ll go farther than that. I think it is one of the best compositions of all time. I love it. I think it\u2019s a work of genius.\u201d<\/p>\n\nShe and DeLeone have met, but they haven\u2019t discussed the ballet in great detail. He has, however, left behind voluminous notes on the company\u2019s various productions, which has provided Wang with a depth of company history she wouldn\u2019t have otherwise had.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat I do <\/em>know is that Carmon leaves huge shoes to fill,\u201d said Wang. \u201cHis history here is almost like the history of the company itself.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\nFor her part, Morgan is delighted with Wang. Although she is no longer the company\u2019s artistic director, this is a production that Morgan choreographed, so she has been in rehearsal every day.<\/p>\n
\u201cI love the energy Alyssa is bringing to the production,\u201d Morgan said. \u201cShe is super smart. You mention something to her one time and she\u2019s got it.\u201d<\/p>\n\nThere\u2019s also an intangible quality about Wang that Morgan admires.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know, to some conductors, dancers are regarded as second-class citizens, especially when compared to a symphonic work,\u201d Morgan said. \u201cThat was never the case with Carmon. We were spoiled with him as our music director. But I love what I\u2019ve seen with Alyssa so far. Conducting for dance? Some people just get it. And she does.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.cincinnati.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"David Lyman \u00a0|\u00a0 Special to The Enquirer Video: Backstage at Cincinnati Ballet’s ‘Nutcracker’ at Music Hall Cincinnati Ballet’s “Nutcracker” celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2024. It\u2019s \u201cNutcracker\u201d time. Again. In fact, for Cincinnati Ballet, it\u2019s \u201cNutcracker\u201d time for the 51st year. (That\u2019s 52 if you count the 2020 pandemic version, an hourlong TV broadcast.) There […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2195170,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25179],"tags":[31785,396721,39915,22220,344468,358177,305127,353270,22219,6297,21741,22034,239348,345132,345135,25632,239349,339770,24392,21739,298114,345133,21800,346106,39215,239343,239347,347962,23471,23759,69477,24047,239344],"class_list":["post-2195169","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-music","tag-acting","tag-acting-u0026-theater","tag-affiliate","tag-arts","tag-broadway","tag-broadway-u0026-musical-theater","tag-cincinnati","tag-classical","tag-classical-music","tag-eamotion","tag-entertainment","tag-events","tag-events-u0026-listings","tag-holiday","tag-holiday-marketplace-hub","tag-holidays","tag-holidays-u0026-seasonal-events","tag-hub","tag-listings","tag-local","tag-local-affiliate-arts-u0026-entertainment","tag-marketplace","tag-music","tag-musical","tag-oh","tag-overall","tag-overall-positive","tag-performing","tag-performing-arts","tag-positive","tag-seasonal","tag-theater","tag-u0026"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Cincinnati-Ballets-Nutcracker-gets-big-switch-behind-the-scenes-scaled.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2195169","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2195169"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2195169\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2195171,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2195169\/revisions\/2195171"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2195170"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2195169"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2195169"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2195169"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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