Courtesy of David Bazemore
UC Santa Barbara Arts & Lectures welcomed New York City-based tap group Dorrance Dance to perform their take on “The Nutcracker Suite” to a bustling Santa Barbara crowd at the Arlington Theatre. Reinventing Tchaikovsky’s classic ballet to the sounds of the arrangement by Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn, the group tapped the audience into the enchanting story of Clara and her nutcracker.
The Dec. 5 performance was atmospheric right off the bat, with the Arlington Theatre inviting audience members to enjoy the holiday spirit with free drinks, snacks and festive performances by the Santa Barbara Revels theatre troupe and the UCSB Jazz Ensemble in the walkway as part of downtown Santa Barbara’s 1st Thursday Art Walk. As the crowd clapped and enjoyed their hot drinks, they drifted into the theater with excitement radiating all around. Dorrance Dance amped up the anticipation for their crowd of all ages with a glitter tassel wall and instruments on stage, building upon the festive spirit already floating in the room.
As the lights lowered and anticipation grew among the crowd, the band entered the stage, starting a jazz tune that would set the mood for the night onward. The Arts & Lectures staff welcomed Aaron Marcellus, the lead vocalist for the show’s first section. As the band played a myriad of popular Christmas classics, Marcellus invited the cast members to join him and tap along to the tune with special guest dancer Melinda Sullivan, reminding the audience to “remember the possibilities of magic and wonder and joy” of the holiday season.
The dancers each got a moment of their own to show off their impressive mix of tap and modern breakdancing, sliding onstage and leaving the audience in awe as applause filled the room, only increasing when Marcellus himself joined the troupe in their dance.
Encouraging the audience to whoop and sing along, Marcellus sang for the last time of the night (or so it was thought) — a rendition of the holiday classic “Jingle Bells” — but then received a gift directly on stage. Playing into the suspense of the delivery mysteriously happening amid the show, Marcellus began to read the book he had been gifted, only to reveal that it is the story of “The Nutcracker.” And, as the glitter wall lifted, he drew the audience into the story with his magical tone and after reading its beginning aloud, disappeared.
What followed was a surprising and fresh take on the well-known ballet, with minimalistic but beyond impressive sets. The production featured creative takes on the costumes for both the Nutcracker and the Mouse King, as costume designer Andrew Jordan’s papier-mâché heads and body parts created a cartoon-like experience that could be seen even from the last rows. Dorrance Dance successfully captured the magical essence of the original story as they tapped away for the entirety of the 65 minutes of their show.
The stage filled with fake snow, giant flower headpieces and impressive dancing without ever missing a beat, as one could hear the familiar notes of the “Waltz of the Flowers” or the “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy” (in this case, the “Sugar Rum Cherry” instead of the “Sugar Plum Fairy” character in the classic ballet) in between the jazzy reworking. Clara and her nutcracker visited each member of the story as the audience cheered them on, placing the Arlington Theatre into the bubble of candy-colored Christmas and fairy tales.
Courtesy of David Bazemore
Upon the end of the show, artistic director Michelle Dorrance and choreographer Josette Wiggan spoke about their choice to do this specific jazzy production. Dorrance recalled her mother, a ballet dancer, playing “The Nutcracker” CD with her dancer friends and creating their own, improvised version to the music. The CD is what inspired Dorrance Dance to create their own rendition of the story, similar to her mother, but with a tap twist.
Wiggan, who also stars in the show as the Sugar Rum Cherry, spoke a bit more about the process of the choreography and the inspiration from the movie musical “Sweet Charity,” as she highlighted her fondness of its “whimsical nature of choreography.” Continuing, she spoke about the importance of the audience in the making of this show, wanting to make “a fairy tale, larger-than-life experience that the audience can take part in. That gave it the fuel.”
Wiggan also brought attention to the importance of Ellington’s reworking of the classical ballet, crediting it with helping “guide the parts of the story that stood out,” something seen in the production’s relatively short runtime that highlights the key parts of the story of “The Nutcracker.”
Without a doubt, the Dorrance Dance production of “The Nutcracker Suite” was a night to remember. Bringing their fresh take into the walls of the Arlington Theatre, “Santa Barbara’s first Nutcracker” brought the community together to sway in unison to the jazzy spirit of Christmas and tap shoes.
