- Public performances begin at 7:30 pm on Friday, continue at 2:00 pm and 7:30 pm on Saturday, and continue until 2:00 pm on Sunday. Davis Theater.
- Right after the matinee performances on Saturday and Sunday, kids can take the stage at the Sugarplum Fairy Party to meet the dancers and receive gifts. This ticket is $10 per child. Adults do not need tickets.
The holiday dance tradition continues Friday through Sunday in Montgomery with the Montgomery Ballet’s 41st annual production of The Nutcracker at Troy University’s Davis Theater.
“It’s a familiar story,” said Montgomery Ballet co-director Laura Villalobos, who also stars as the Sugar Plum Fairy. “There’s Clara, there’s the Mouse King, there’s the Nutcracker.”
The “Nutcracker” holiday story as we know it today is based on the rather dark fairy tale “The Nutcracker and the Mouse King” written in 1816 by German author ETA Hoffmann. Among other pursuits, Hoffmann was known as a writer of fantasy and horror. Like many original fairy tales of that era, it was not a very happy story. It was later adapted for a younger audience by French author Alexandre Dumas. It is from Dumas’s famous version of The Nutcracker of Nuremberg, for which Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky created the ballet The Nutcracker.
According to Villalobos, this weekend’s production features a large number of multi-part children.
“A professional company and a cast of kids have been rehearsing for this since before Halloween,” Villalobos said. So it was a bit difficult for a professional company.”
She said the production has revamped its costumes, props and backgrounds.
Villalobos has danced in “The Nutcracker” for several years and said being the Sugar Plum Fairy is one of her favorite parts.
Villalobos said, “Not because she is the first person on stage, but because for many children she represents this magical and fantastical creature.” I feel like she’s inviting me to think about it.”
This year’s performance is particularly notable for Villalobos, who is returning to the stage about two months after giving birth.
“She’s getting bigger and bigger. She’s in the theater,” said Villalobos. “My other 5-year-old daughter tried to put her in ‘The Nutcracker’ last year, but she wasn’t as thrilled. maybe we can.”
Before the public performances begin, the Montgomery Ballet presents two LEAP performances for schools and youth on Thursdays and Fridays at 10am.
Public performances begin at 7:30 pm on Friday, continue at 2:00 pm and 7:30 pm on Saturday, and continue until 2:00 pm on Sunday. Davis Theater.
Right after the matinee performances on Saturday and Sunday, kids can take the stage at the Sugarplum Fairy Party to meet the dancers and receive gifts. This ticket is $10 per child. Adults do not need tickets.
“We couldn’t do it without the support of the community. We are very grateful to them,” Villalobos said. We were all excited last year, and the excitement was even higher as more children participated than last year. I think the word has spread about the opportunities we can offer these dancers. “
The cast of The Nutcracker’s Montgomery Ballet are:
Clara: Marisa Ellis
Nephew/Nutcracker Prince: Andrew Zwala
Drosselmeyer: Thaddeus Morris
Jester doll: Patrick Van Buren
Kiss doll: Samantha Ayala / Victoria Waroto / Libby West
Soldier doll: Andrew Zwala
Mr. Stahlbaum: Jean Horton
Mrs. Stahlbaum: Brittany Beaulieu
Fritz: Vera Powell
Maid: Hanna Yim
party mom: Kayla Gossett, Dawn Kamphouse, Michelle DeAngelis, Libby West/Victoria Waroto
party dad: David Wise, Michael Fitzpatrick, Jaron Givan, Justin Amos
party teens: Katie Brown, Isabel Cabral, Taylor Tunstall, Adrian Weisz, Zoe Zink
party girl: Margaret Carver, Ira Chastain, Mackenzie Gregory, Sophie Greer, Eva Holbert, Calliope Roofer, Jada Roofer, Tegan McNabb
party boy: Kenda Bonner, Elexis Huggins, Suan Kim, Rachel Rinna, Margie Ann Prescott, Aidan Saldanha, Amelia Kate Scala,
Rat King: Jaron Givan
mouse or rat: Katie Brown, Michael Fitzpatrick, Dawn Kamphouse, Taylor Tunstall, Adrian Weisz, Zoe Zink
mouse: Kenda Bonner, Margaret Carver, Ira Chastain, Sophie Greer, Eva Holbert, Rachel Rinna, Calliope Rufer, Tegan McNabb, Vera Powell, Margie Ann Prescott
Soldiers: Isabel Cabral, Hannah Yim, Megan Cabral, Jada Roofer, Aidan Saldanha, Sarina Simone, Amelia Kate Scala, Hannah Stevenson, Anna Stevenson
The snow queen: Libby West/Samantha Ayala
Snow King: Andrew Zwala
Snowflake: Harley Larson, Arianna Yang, Kathy Thomson, Annie Dick, Samantha Ayala, Michelle DeAngelis, Sarah Parry, Victoria Waroto
angel: Megan Cabral, Elexis Huggins, Jada Roofer, Vera Powell, Marge Ann Prescott, Tatum Richard, Hannah Stephenson, Anna Stephenson
Sugar Plum Fairy: Laura Villalobos
Knight: Patrick Van Buren
Spanish: Andrew Zuwala and Harley Larson, Aaryanna Yang or Annie Dick, Cassie Thomson
Arabic: Jaylon Givan and Libby West or Michelle DeAngelis
Chinese: Sarah Parry and Samantha Ayala
Russia: Thaddeus Morris
Polycinel: Megan Cabral, Mackenzie Gregory, Suan Kim, Tatum Richard, Sarina Simone, Amelia Kate Scala
Meliton: Annie Dick, Harley Larson, Arianna Yang, Marisa Ellis
Drop: Michelle DeAngelis/Victoria Waroto
Flowers: Samantha Ayala, Marisa Ellis, Libby West, Dawn Kamphouse/Adrian Weisz, Sarah Parry, Michelle DeAngelis/Victoria Waroto
