Symphony Preview: Visions of sugar plums

This article originally appeared at 88.1 KDHX, where Chuck Lavazzi is the senior performing arts critic.

Konstantin Ivanov's original sketch
for the set of The Nutcracker (1892)
Source: en.wikipedia.org

If there's one thing you can count on at this time of the year, it's that someone somewhere will be putting on a production of Tchaikovsky's popular 1892 ballet "The Nutcracker." This weekend (November 29-December 1), that includes the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra (SLSO) as Andrew Grams [https://andrewgrams.com/] conducts the SLSO and St. Louis Children's Choirs in a complete concert performance of Tchaikovsky's classic. But their "Nutcracker" is probably going to be unlike any other you might have seen.

That's because, being a concert performance, it will be a "Nutcracker" without dancers (but with the charming children's chorus that accompanies the "Waltz of the Snowflakes). What it will have, though, is special lighting design by Luke Kritzeck, Director of Lighting and Resident Designer for the New World Symphony located in Miami Beach, Florida.

The Moscow Ballet's Great Russian Nutcracker
Photo: The Fabulous Fox

Mr. Kritzeck's resume is impressive, including six years touring with Cirque de Soleil as well as designs for the Chautauqua Opera (New York), the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, and the Guthrie Theater (Minneapolis), among others. I have no idea what he has in mind for the SLSO, but a look at his online portfolio certainly suggests it will be creative.

The use of high-tech lighting and projections is nothing new for the SLSO, of course. In the past they have found some fairly ingenious ways of using projected images to enhance works written for the stage, from a performance of Copland's "Appalachian Spring" ballet suite accompanied by watercolors inspired by the ballet, to vivid projected scenery for a concert version of "Aida," to a performance of Schoenberg's "Five Pieces for Orchestra" in which each piece was accompanied by a more or less contemporary painting that mirrored the movement's central idea.

And "The Nutcracker" is certainly brimming with colorful scenes to inspire a visual designer. The first act includes the battle between the Nutcracker and the Mouse King, the Nutcracker's transformation into a handsome prince, and the magical journey to the Kingdom of Sweets. The second act gives us the various "national" dances (Chinese, Arabian, Spanish, and Russian Trepak), along with the dance of the mirlitons (a 19th-century cousin of the common kazoo, as well as a type of cake). There's also the popular "Waltz of the Flowers," the "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy" with its famous celesta solo, and the dramatic "Pas de Deux" for the Sugar Plum Fairy and her Cavalier.

Mother Gigogne and her children

Act II also has one of the odder numbers, at least for contemporary American audiences: "La mère Gigogne et les polichinelles" (roughly: "Mother Gigogne and the puppets"). A character whose origins lie in French marionette theatre, she's usually portrayed as a woman (although often danced by a man) with a huge skirt out of which bursts a collection of tumblers and/or clowns. She would have been recognizable to Tchaikovsky's audiences. These days, not so much.

There's much more to be said about the music and the scenario of "The Nutcracker," but since Australian music writer Yvonne Frindle says it so well and in such great detail in the program, I'll just refer you there.

A few words are in order about this week's guest conductor, though. Now in his seventh season as Music Director of the Elgin Symphony Orchestra in Elgin, Illinois (a town of just over 100,000 around 35 miles northwest of Chicago), Mr. Grams has had guest conducting gigs with high-profile domestic orchestras such as the Chicago Symphony, the Detroit Symphony, the Philadelphia Orchestra, and the Houston Symphony. Internationally, his resume includes appearances with the symphony orchestras of Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver, as well as the Orchestre National de France, the Hong Kong Philharmonic, the BBC Symphony Orchestra London, and orchestras in Australia and New Zealand. No wonder his web bio describes him as a "frequent traveler."

The St. Louis Ballet's Nutcracker at the Touhill

More to the point for this weekend, though, Mr. Grams has extensive experience with "The Nutcracker". He has led multiple performances of the New York City Ballet's production (with choreography by George Balanchine), as well as the first performances of a new production of the ballet for the Norwegian National Ballet in Olso. Reviewing his performance of "Nutcracker" excerpts with the Dallas Symphony, Scott Cantrell wrote that "he worked magic start to finish" and praised his "loving, sophisticated command of the score".

He'll also be bringing a musician's perspective to his conducting, having played violin with the New York City Ballet Orchestra from 1998 to 2004. He has played with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, the Orchestra of St. Luke's (both based on NYC), the Brooklyn Philharmonic, and the New Jersey Symphony as well.

The Essentials: Andrew Grams conducts the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra and St. Louis Children's Choirs in a complete performance of Tchaikovsky's "The Nutcracker" ballet on Friday and Saturday at 8 pm, and Sunday at 3 pm, November 29 - December 1. The program includes special lighting design by Luke Kritzeck. Performances take place at Powell Symphony Hall in Grand Center.

Preview: Tchaikovsky's fairy tale ballets dominate the stage at Powell Hall this week

Share on Google+:

If there's one thing you can count on at Christmas time, it's that someone somewhere will be putting on a production of Tchaikovsky's popular 1892 ballet The Nutcracker. This weekend (December 2-4, 2016), that includes the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra. But their Nutcracker is probably going to be unlike any other you might have seen.

Tchaikovsky in 1906

That's because, to begin with, it will only be half a Nutcracker—specifically, the second half, which takes place entirely in the fanciful Kingdom of Sweets. And, since it's a concert performance, it will be a Nutcracker without dancers. What it will have, though, is "visual design" by Webster University's Leigh Gerdine College of Fine Arts.

Your guess is as good as mine as to what that will mean, but I can tell you that in the past the SLSO has found some fairly ingenious ways of using projected images to enhance works written for the stage, from a performance of Copland's Appalachian Spring ballet suite accompanied by watercolors inspired by the ballet to vivid projected scenery for a complete performance of Verdi's Aida.

The second act of Nutcracker certainly offers plenty of colorful scenes. There are the various "national" dances (Chinese, Arabian, Spanish, and the Russian Trepak) along with the dance of the mirlitons (a 19th-century cousin of the common kazoo as well as a type of cake). There's also the popular "Waltz of the Flowers," the "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy" with its famous celesta solo, and the dramatic "Pas de Deux" for the Sugar Plum Fairy and her Cavalier.

Mother Gigogne and her children

Act II also has one of the odder numbers, at least for contemporary American audiences: "La mère Gigogne et les polichinelles" (roughly: "Mother Gigogne and the puppets"). A character whose origins lie in French marionette theatre, she's usually portrayed as a woman (although often danced by a man) with a huge skirt out of which bursts a collection of tumblers and/or clowns. She would have been recognizable to Tchaikovsky's audiences. These days, not so much. The SLSO program describes the number as "Polchinelle (The Clown)," which has the advantage of being less obscure.

All of this, in any case, means that the Webster artists should find a cornucopia of visual inspiration in Tchaikovsky's music.

UPDATE: According to a press release today, December 2nd, from the SLSO: "Due to technical difficulties beyond our control, the visuals planned in partnership with Webster University Leigh Gerdine College of Fine Arts will not be displayed for this weekend's performances. However, there is no change to the pieces performed on the program."

Tchaikovsky dominates this weekend's concerts, in fact. Most of the first half of the evening will be taken up with a suite consisting of six selections from Swan Lake (1876) and two from Sleeping Beauty (1889) that will feature concertmaster David Halen's violin, along with Principal Cello Daniel Lee and Principal Harp Allegra Lilly. The Swan Lake numbers include dances for both the White and Black Swans and a couple of "national" dances (Russian and Hungarian). From Sleeping Beauty we get the "Entr'acte symphonique" from Act II, a piece written expressly for the noted Hungarian violinist Leopold Auer, along with music from the following scene, in which Prince Désiré discovers the sleeping Princess Aurore.

The program will open with the overture to Alexander Borodin's patriotic opera Prince Igor. Left unfinished at the time of the composer's death in 1887, Prince Igor was eventually completed by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov and Alexander Glazunov. The overture was cobbled together by Glazunov, who based on themes from the opera and some sketches Borodin left behind, so in a way it's as much his work as it is Borodin's.

Alexander Borodin, 1865

No matter; it's vibrant and dramatic music, filled with memorable themes-including one that, along with many other Borodin melodies, made its way into Wright and Forrest's 1953 musical Kismet. It pops up repeatedly, but you'll hear it for the first time early in the overture, following the big brass fanfares that come right after the slow introduction. In Kismet it's the basis for the song "The Olive Tree," in which the poetic beggar Hajj realizes life might have great things in store for him.

At the podium will be former SLSO Resident Conductor Ward Stare, whose star has clearly been on the rise since he left St. Louis. I saw him conducting Francesca Zambello's excellent Porgy and Bess in Chicago a couple of years ago and he was recently appointed Music Director of the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. He has also had guest conducting gigs in Houston, Québec, and Dallas. It will be good to see him back on his old home turf.

The Essentials: Ward Stare conducts the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra and violin soloist David Halen Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., and Sunday at 3 p.m., December 2-4, at Powell Hall in Grand Center. For more information: stlsymphony.org.