Tchaikovsky’s classical ballet, ‘The Nutcracker,’ Saturday and Sunday at the MACC
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For the fifth year in a row, Alexander Academy of Performing Arts will present Tchaikovsky's enchanting classical ballet "The Nutcracker" at the Maui Arts & Cultural Center's Castle Theater, with three performances opening on Saturday.
One of the most popular ballets of all time, "The Nutcracker" has become a beloved seasonal event. It tells the story of a young girl on Christmas Eve receiving a nutcracker doll. After it breaks, she is transported to a magical land where the doll comes to life, and together they battle mice and are honored by the Sugar Plum Fairy in the Land of Sweets.
"It's really special that we do it every year," said the ballet's director/choreographer Absalon Figueroa. "It is a huge undertaking. When we decided to embark on this endeavor, we knew that if we're going to do 'Nutcracker,' we want to do it right. We want to do the full-length ballet using the entire Tchaikovsky score, and tell the story in a traditional manner with great costumes."
The principal cast features Aleeya Cantor-Charles and Sierra Berrigan as the Sugar Plum Fairy, AriaDai as the Snow Queen, Annaliese Witter and Aleah Phillips as Dew Drop, Ella Craft as the Rat King, Evelyn Evergreen as Clara, and returning guest artist from New York City, Erik Osterkil, as the Nutcracker and Cavalier.
Around 150 dancers will grace the Castle Theater stage. "We have students as young as three years old in the production," said Figueroa. "They are the angels who open up act two. It is the most precious moment of the ballet, and they usually get more applause than our principal dancers, who are working very hard. Our corps de ballet, there's 24 upper-level girls."
Besides Figueroa, Amelia Nelson, Hallie Hunt, and Ella Craft assist with choreography, and costumes are by Jennifer Oberg and The Sewing Hui. "Every year we just keep improving on the year before, and a really important part is that we've been working with Jennifer Oberg," said Figueroa. "Her ability to create costumes, her imagination, her creativity, her choices are absolutely incredible, and they just elevate everything that our dancers do."
Teaching at the Alexander Academy of Performing Arts since 2015, Figueroa trained at the Orlando Ballet School under the direction of Fernando Bujones and danced with the Orlando Ballet Company. He completed his teacher training at the American Ballet Theatre, and in Havana at the Ballet Nacional de Cuba.
"I used to dance for Orlando Ballet, and the director was Cuban-American," he said.
"He was just an absolutely brilliant, world-famous ballet dancer, and there were so many Cubans in the company that one day I thought, I've got to go to Cuba and figure out what are they doing down there. They're absolutely amazing dancers."
In working with Alexander Academy students, he has been impressed with their growth. "Over the past five years, the level of our school, the ability of our dancers have continued to increase," he said. "So I've been able to adjust my choreography to make it more challenging. Some of the choreography that you'll see on stage is 100% professional level. I've shown some of the videos of our girls dancing on Maui to former dance partners around the world, and their comments are, 'They look like professional company dancers.'"
Some of the most famous scenes in "The Nutcracker" include the Battle Scene, where toy soldiers fight an army of mice led by the Mouse King; the Snowflake Waltz, which marks the transition into the magical Land of Sweets; and the iconic Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy, a signature solo for the Sugar Plum Fairy.
"The Waltz of the Snowflakes is my favorite," he said. "I absolutely love the music for it. There's some really magical moments in it."
Figueroa especially appreciates having the expanse of the Castle Theater stage to present the ballet. "It was a dream come true to be able to take our production to that level," he said. "Our students have the opportunity to dance on that stage with such a large audience. It's such a different feeling for them to stand there and look out and feel that energy that you get from the audience. The sound of their applause is totally different when we're used to performing in a smaller theater. When you have over a thousand people applauding, it's such a treat, and I'm so glad that our girls get to experience that."
The Nutcracker Ballet is presented in the MACC's Castle Theater on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. and Sunday at 12:30 and 4:30 p.m. Tickets are $42, $57, and $77.