Helene Posted November 10, 2017 Share Posted November 10, 2017 I'll start with the current "SNOFEES" promo: no processing fees through November 17 (PST) if you click the "No fee" price options after you select your seat or cite the promo code "SNOFEES" if you call the Box Office (206-441-2424). https://www.pnb.org/mypromo/?promo=sNoFees&utm_source=PNB+List&utm_campaign=ee2b252620-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2016_11_15&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_df81d84eb5-ee2b252620-295706613 Link to comment
Helene Posted November 11, 2017 Author Share Posted November 11, 2017 Now for the press release, part 1: PACIFIC NORTHWEST BALLET PRESENTS November 24 – December 28, 2017 Marion Oliver McCaw Hall 321 Mercer Street, Seattle Center Seattle, WA 98109 SEATTLE, WA – Pacific Northwest Ballet’s sparkling production of George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker® returns to Seattle Center’s McCaw Hall for 35 performances November 24 through December 28, 2017. Featuring eye-popping colorful sets and costumes by author/illustrator Ian Falconer (Olivia the Pig), Tchaikovsky’s timeless score performed live by the mighty PNB Orchestra, and the beloved story of Clara and her Nutcracker prince, PNB’s production is a delight for audiences young and old. Tickets to this year’s run may be purchased through the PNB Box Office at 206.441.2424, online at PNB.org, or in person at 301 Mercer St. 2017 marks the 125th anniversary of The Nutcracker. On November 14, PNB shines a spotlight on the classic ballet, with a special studio presentation taking an in-depth look at the ballet’s origins, including a comparison of dances from the original 1892 St. Petersburg production and Balanchine’s classic 1954 version. For more information, see “Special Events,” below. 2017 NUTCRACKER PERFORMANCE SCHEDUL Day Date Times Friday Nov. 24 7:30pm Saturday Nov. 25 2:00 pm & 7:30 pm Sunday Nov. 26 12:30 pm & 5:30 pm Friday Dec. 1 7:30 pm Saturday Dec. 2 2:00 pm* & 7:30 pm *Benefit performance – See “Special Events,” below. Sunday Dec. 3 12:30 pm & 5:30 pm Friday Dec. 8 7:30pm Saturday Dec. 9 2:00 pm & 7:30 pm Sunday Dec. 10 12:30 pm & 5:30 pm Thursday Dec. 14 7:30 pm Friday Dec. 15 7:30 pm Saturday Dec. 16 2:00 pm & 7:30 pm Sunday Dec. 17 12:30 pm & 5:30 pm Wednesday Dec. 20 7:30 pm Thursday Dec. 21 2:00 pm & 7:30 pm Friday Dec. 22 2:00 pm & 7:30 pm Saturday Dec. 23 2:00 pm & 7:30 pm Sunday Dec. 24 12:30 pm Tuesday Wednesday Dec. 26 Dec. 27 12:30 pm & 5:30 pm 12:30 pm & 5:30 pm Thursday Dec. 28 12:30 pm & 5:30 pm Link to comment
Helene Posted November 11, 2017 Author Share Posted November 11, 2017 SPECIAL EVENTS Studio Presentation: The Nutcracker at 125 Tuesday, November 14, 5:00 pm Celebrate the 125th anniversary of The Nutcracker with an hour-long look at the ballet’s origins, including a comparison of dances from the original 1892 St. Petersburg production and Balanchine’s classic 1954 version performed by Pacific Northwest Ballet. With PNB Company dancers and artistic staff. Tickets are $25, available through the PNB Box Office. Opening Weekend Festivities Celebrate opening weekend of The Nutcracker (Nov. 24-26) and kick off the start of the holiday season with crafts and activities, magicians, dance classes, and more. Free with admission. Nutcracker Benefit Performance Saturday, December 2, 2:00 pm Join PNB in a new holiday tradition – The Nutcracker Benefit. The performance you love, plus added delights for audience members, all while raising much-needed funds to benefit PNB. Enjoy the matinee performance of The Nutcracker with lobby entertainment and crafts, pre-show and intermission specials on delicious beverages and treats; and a keepsake souvenir Nutcracker memento to cherish for years. All Benefit tickets purchased include a charitable donation that is fully tax-deductible. Visit PNB.org/Nutcracker/Benefit. Listen to the Ballet PNB partners with Classical KING FM 98.1 to bring listeners some of the world’s most popular ballet scores, featuring the Pacific Northwest Ballet Orchestra direct from McCaw Hall. Tune in for a live broadcast of George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker® on Saturday, December 2 at 7:30 pm. Only on KING FM, 98.1 fm or online at KING.org/listen. See the Ballet…and Play the Instruments Classical KING FM 98.1, in collaboration with Music Center Northwest, will host their ever-popular Instrument Petting Zoo at The Nutcracker matinees on December 2, 3, 9, and 16. Stop by and get a feel for the instruments that make Tchaikovsky’s beautiful score come to life! Free with admission. Nutcracker Suites at McCaw Skip the lines and bustle of the lobby at intermission! Treat you and yours to an enchanted intermission experience in the SAVOR…McCaw Hall Nutcracker Suite. The Nutcracker Suite takes the stress out of intermission and adds to the memorable wonder of your day at the ballet. There’s a range of activities awaiting you: a Build-a-Cupcake experience in partnership with Cupcake Royale; hot cocoa, sweets, and light appetizers presented by SAVOR… Executive Chef John Roberts; activities and photo opportunities; and coffee, tea, wine, beer, and sparkling wine for the adults. NutcrackerSuites are $30 per person (includes applicable tax and service charge); performance tickets sold separately. (There are no Nutcracker Suites at the Dec. 2 matinee and Dec. 9 evening performance.) To purchase, visit PNB.org/NutcrackerSuites. FAQs for PNB Kids Visit PNB.org/Community/PNB-Kids for helpful hints and frequently asked questions about attending the ballet with children. Link to comment
Helene Posted November 11, 2017 Author Share Posted November 11, 2017 And finally, FUN FACTOIDS! 99.97% of PNB’s production of George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker® was built entirely by artisans, craftspeople, carpenters, painters, and animators in Seattle, WA. Over 50 drapers, stitchers, first hands, milliners, dyers and painters built the costumes. PNB’s shop was not large enough to accommodate the number of costumers required, so some of the costumes were constructed at the Seattle Children’s Theater and Seattle Repertory Theatre costume shops. There are 154 costumes in the show, not counting duplicates (i.e., multiple versions of the same costume, for different-sized dancers playing the same role – Sugar Plum Fairy, Cavalier, Dewdrop, etc.) Clara’s party dress and Drosselmeier’s coat lining required 10 light coats of red paint for each stripe. Each Snow skirt has nine layers of various fabrics. There are 56 points on each skirt. There are 174 velvet diamonds and 322 jewels on the Harlequin costume. The Harlequin’s partner, Columbine, has 160 velvet diamonds and 272 jewels. 640: Black pompoms on the eight Polichinelle costumes. 760: Petals on the Waltz of the Flowers costumes. (19 costumes, including extras.) 10 feet and 60 pounds: The width and weight of Mother Ginger’s skirt. 175: Number of snaps on the Mother Ginger costume. 4,000: Holes cut by hand to create the lace “doily” tutus and headpieces for the Marzipan costumes. 300: Jewels hand-sewn on the two Arabian (peacock) headpieces. 500: Yards of tubular horsehair used for the Party Mothers’ hairpieces. 1,428: Cabochons sewn onto the Spanish women’s costumes. 2,568: Appliques machine-sewn on the seven Spanish dresses. Sewing the Nutcracker doll required a 16” long needle. Eagle-eyed audience members may spy one gold tooth on the Mouse King. Speaking of mice: Seventeen mice (eight adult mice, eight young mice, and the seven-headed Mouse King) were built by Erik Andor and a team of fabricators in his Pioneer Square studio. 98 yards of “fur” have been used to create the mice. They have a total of 230 whiskers. Each adult tail consists of 25 segments. Each ear is made up of six pieces. Laid end-to-end, the mice’s upper lips total 782 inches. For more information, visit EncoreArtsSeattle.com/making-mice-erik-andor 35 men and women in the PNB Scene shop built and painted the sets and props. There are 22 painted drops. 3,000 square yards of fabric were used in the creation of the scenery. 343 gallons of paint were used in the painting of the scenery. The corridor scrim at the top of the show depicts Nutcracker historical figures Alexander Dumas, E.T.A. Hoffman, Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Marius Petipa, Lev Ivanov, George Balanchine, and Lincoln Kirstein. An actual walnut was used to model the construction and painting of the Nut Boat. It took 400 hours to build the Christmas tree. At its full height it stands 40 feet. There are 450 lights on it. 30 cubic feet of “snow” will be deployed during the Act I Snow scene, per performance. One of the delightful highlights of PNB’s production of George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker® is the animated video that accompanies the overture. (For an excerpt, click here.) Created by Straightface Studios located in the Interbay neighborhood of Seattle, the three-and-a-half minute video takes audiences on a flight through the woods and a New England town, up to the front steps of the Stahlbaum home. The town was inspired by antique mid-19th Century maps and satellite images of New England. The terrain covers 372 sq. miles and there are over 1.5 million trees, 8,540 bushes, 287 buildings, and seven mice. In 2016, Straightface created a second video to play during the first act violin solo following the Party scene. This video integrates live-action ballet dancers into a computer-generated world. The prominent Christmas star that appears in the Snow scene at the end of Act I is presented by renowned artist Dale Chihuly. Winter Star, from Chihuly’s popular Chandelier series, debuted as part of the artist’s iconic Chihuly in the Light of Jerusalem 2000 exhibition, and has also been exhibited at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (near London) and New York Botanical Garden. And finally: Amusements Gift Shop at McCaw Hall has stocked its counters and shelves with 18,000 ornaments, 2,500 nutcrackers, 4,400 plush animals and dolls (around 2,000 of them wearing tutus), 1,400 t-shirts, 600 tiaras and 200 magic wands for shoppers attending the show. Link to comment
sandik Posted November 11, 2017 Share Posted November 11, 2017 Or, as their press rep called it during the dress rehearsal for their current program "our annual holiday recital." Link to comment
Helene Posted November 19, 2017 Author Share Posted November 19, 2017 First week of casting is up: The Nutcracker will run from Friday, November 24-Sunday, November 26, with matinee and evening performances on Saturday and Sunday. Please be careful to note start times, and, as always, casting is subject to change: https://www.pnb.org/nutcracker/ (scroll to bottom) Link to the downloadable spreadsheet: Nutcracker 17_11_18.xlsx Link to comment
sandik Posted November 19, 2017 Share Posted November 19, 2017 Thanks for the link to the casting -- I'm there for the Sunday 5:30 show. Link to comment
Helene Posted November 23, 2017 Author Share Posted November 23, 2017 After stalking the site today to no avail, I just got a heads up that Week 2's casting is up: https://www.pnb.org/nutcracker/ Link to downloadable spreadsheet: Nutcracker 17_11_22.xlsx Five couples dance Sugar Plum Fairy and Cavalier for the first time this Nutcracker season, and four new for 2017 Dewdrops. Link to comment
Helene Posted November 23, 2017 Author Share Posted November 23, 2017 The Seattle Times has run a story on Mother Ginger, with quotes from Miles Pertl and Joshua Grant that include trade secrets, and there's a short time-lapse video of the skirt being assembled: https://www.seattletimes.com/entertainment/dance/mother-ginger-a-big-crowd-pleaser-in-pacific-northwest-ballets-the-nutcracker/ I think I want drywall stilts for life in general. Link to comment
sandik Posted November 23, 2017 Share Posted November 23, 2017 4 hours ago, Helene said: The Seattle Times has run a story on Mother Ginger, with quotes from Miles Pertl and Joshua Grant that include trade secrets, and there's a short time-lapse video of the skirt being assembled: https://www.seattletimes.com/entertainment/dance/mother-ginger-a-big-crowd-pleaser-in-pacific-northwest-ballets-the-nutcracker/ I think I want drywall stilts for life in general. I've been a short person all my life (even my last name is short -- "Kurtz") . I always wonder what it would be like to be tall. Link to comment
Helene Posted November 29, 2017 Author Share Posted November 29, 2017 Casting is up for Week Three, with some changes to Week Two: Noelani Pantastico and Lucien Postlewaite will do their first performance on December 9 at 2pm, and Leta Biasucci and Benjamin Griffiths will dance on December 2 at 7:30pm. Price Suddarth replaces Ezra Thomson as Tea on December 3 at 5:30pm. Link to casting on PNB site: https://www.pnb.org/nutcracker/#casting Link to downloadable spreadsheet: Nutcracker 17_11_28.xlsx Link to comment
Helene Posted November 29, 2017 Author Share Posted November 29, 2017 And something that flew right over my head: Batkhurel Bold will perform Drosselmeier on Saturday, December 2 at 2pm, the Nutcracker gala performance. Link to comment
sandik Posted November 29, 2017 Share Posted November 29, 2017 1 hour ago, Helene said: And something that flew right over my head: Batkhurel Bold will perform Drosselmeier on Saturday, December 2 at 2pm, the Nutcracker gala performance. Me too -- so glad he's still got a foot on stage. Link to comment
Helene Posted December 9, 2017 Author Share Posted December 9, 2017 Casting is up for the Week 4, December 14-17 (Thu-Sun): https://www.pnb.org/nutcracker/#casting Here's the link to the downloadable spreadsheet: Nutcracker 17_12_06.xlsx I don't see any debut asterisks, but Sarah-Gabrielle Ryan will dance Sugar Plum Fairy (with Steven Loch) on Saturday, December 16 at 2pm. Also, Noelani Pantastico's Cavalier in week four is James Moore. Link to comment
pirouetta27 Posted December 9, 2017 Share Posted December 9, 2017 According to several public-facing Instagram posts from PNB dancers, it appears that Ryan may have already debuted Sugar Plum Fairy this weekend. Link to comment
Helene Posted December 9, 2017 Author Share Posted December 9, 2017 Do you mean last weekend to replace someone, or this afternoon? Elle Macy danced last night (first performance of this weekend) and was stupendous. Edited to add: since the Instagram timestamp on Ryan's photo says 22 hours ago (at this moment on Saturday), I wonder if there was a school performance yesterday in which she danced: Link to comment
Helene Posted December 14, 2017 Author Share Posted December 14, 2017 Casting is up for Week Five (Dec 20-23): https://www.pnb.org/nutcracker/#casting Here is the link to the downloadable spreadsheet: Nutcracker 17_12_13.xlsx Link to comment
sandik Posted December 14, 2017 Share Posted December 14, 2017 I know Nut can be kind of a grind, but it's great to see so many different people getting opportunities. If I had a really big budget and lots of free time, I'd be in the theater for several of these! Link to comment
Helene Posted December 16, 2017 Author Share Posted December 16, 2017 There have been several PNB features posted to Facebook that feature Angela Sterling's great photos: Top L-R: Lindsi Dec in Grand Pas de Deux, Rachel Foster in Marzipan Shepherdess, Elle Macy as Dewdrop Bottom L-R: Nicole Rizzitano in Snow, Leta Biasucci as Lead Flower, Angelica Generosa as Sugar Plum Fairy (variation tutu): Link to comment
Helene Posted December 16, 2017 Author Share Posted December 16, 2017 Plus PNB dancers, now and then, from the PNB blog, with clips of Pantastico and Murphy current Nutcracker role: https://blogpnborg.wordpress.com/2017/12/01/then-and-now-nutcracker-grows-up/ Link to comment
Helene Posted December 25, 2017 Author Share Posted December 25, 2017 Casting for the final week's performances, Tuesday-Thursday, 26-28 December are up: https://www.pnb.org/nutcracker/#casting Link to the downloadable spreadsheet is here: Nutcracker 17_12_24.xlsx Link to comment
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