I too attended the two "alternative" Nutcrackers in London. I was well warned in advance what to expect from ENB's Scarfe version - not only having read the critics' reviews but also because my daughter, who is at the school, had attended the dress rehearsal in London - so wasn't disappointed by the emphasis on costume and theatricality at the expense of the dancing. I did feel that the party costumes were just a bit too over the top, especially the bishop, but there was enough action to keep me interested throughout the first act, and I'm not normally a great fan of Nutcracker. I too liked to Jack Frosts and snowflakes. We had selected our performance because my daughter wanted to see Yosvani Ramos and he was very impressive. I was a little disappointed in Elena Glurdjidze as the Sugar Plum Fairy but perhaps she is still settling in. The highlight of the afternoon was Cornell Callender in the Russian. My daughter dissolved into a silent fit of giggles which was apparently a reaction to how amazing he was - no man, she tells me, should be that flexible and his turns are just out of this world!
I really liked Yat-Sen Chang as Drosselmeyer though I would have liked to see Irek Mukhamedov do it too. I didn't pick up any of the sinister overtones which the critics complained about. The critics had also been unhappy with Clara's satin pyjamas and red wig but my daughter thought they were really cool, so perhaps this is a generation thing.
The Matthew Bourne Nutcracker was interesting but not an entirely enjoyable evening. I felt that there were some really witty moments but it seemed very slow at times. There isn't enough variety in the first act for my taste. I did like some of the second act dances - and I thought the idea of having Clara trying to sneak past the bouncer to get into the wedding along with each of the acts was great. I loved the Liquorice Allsorts (Spanish) and the Gobstoppers. My daughter, who is definitely a ballet-or-nothing person, hated it from beginning to end!
Clare