The first time I was introduced to the multi-talented Drew McOnie was when I was sent to interview and watch rehearsals at the BBC for So You Think You Can Dance in 2010. As the series unfolded, it became blindingly obvious that he was one of the best dancers in the show and since then, has gone on to make an indelible impression on the dance world.
As well as numerous dance credits, he was the winner of an Oliver Award for Best Theatre Choreography in 2016 for In the Heights and nominated again in 2017 for Jesus Christ Superstar. He is the Director and Choreographer of the McOnie Company and his Nutcracker is the latest in a string of successful productions. With the support of a number of organisations and individuals including Underbelly, Francesca Moody Productions and the Southbank Centre, McOnie has come up with a winning formula. His Nutcracker is original in every sense, from the narrative, to the music and of course, the choreography.
Rather than set it in an affluent Edwardian home, we find ourselves in a rundown bedsit with a single father clearly under pressure and struggling to bring up his son. Clara is replaced with Clive and we learn that Clive’s fascination with the fairy doll, set to be placed on top of the tree, is not approved of by his father and it's quickly supplanted by an Action Man. Clive falls asleep and is transported in his slumber to Dreamland where he encounters and develops friendships with various characters including said Action Man and discovers that he can push the boundaries and grow into the person he wants to be. In the closing sequence, his father recites a poem about how proud he is of his son – an incredibly moving moment that sees them reconcile.
That McOnie is able to convince us that a lavish backdrop is not necessary for the famous Christmas story to win over the public, is truly worth applauding. While he must have derived a little inspiration from Matthew Bourne, it is still very much his own interpretation. Highlights included a battle scene complete with delectable Sugar Plum causing a distraction; a flurry of snowflakes that you'd never want to melt; Clive turned superhero fighting his corner and a series of divertissement completely devoid of any political agenda but presented as a selection of brightly coloured fruit which Action Man consumes as cocktails.
This Nutcracker is just one hour long, which cleverly, leaves the audience yearning for more. The Tuff Nutt Jazz Club is a reinvention of what used to be a restaurant at the back of the Royal Festival Hall, and provides a very small, but just about functional area for the dancing as well as a space for a live jazz band. It’s intimate and highly inclusive. The set and venue designer, Soutra Gilmour has managed to create an atmosphere that, for the duration, was all-encompassing. Cassie Kinoshi has re-imagined Tchaikovsky’s score in a most attractive, jazzed-up, yet recognisable way, with additions from Rio Kai who is also the double bass player in the band. Joshie Harriette’s lighting was magical and costumes by Ryan Dawson Laight were deliciously camp, dazzling and often humorous.
One of McOnie’s greatest calling cards is his dancers, who are not only technically accomplished, but equipped with very large personalities. A cast of six, they each have multiple, glorious costume changes, and play different personas with relish. In that all too brief hour, I was spellbound, intrigued, laughing (a lot) and most definitely captivated.
Tim Hodges, as Clive's father (among other things), ran the whole gamut of emotions as he went from grumpy, overworked dad to loving parent with real sincerity. Amonik Melaco’s Action Man, apart from being statuesque and, quite frankly, beautiful, was very affecting as he too transformed from soldier to softy, from hard exterior to warm empath. Patricia Zhou as Sugar Plum was as seductive, technically polished and amusing as you could wish for and Chanelle Anthony (who I note is an alternative cast of Sugar Plum) was stunningly graceful and slinky, especially in her Orange divert. Rachel Muldoon has a stage presence that is not easy to forget. Great dancer that she is, in her Red Berries duet with Hodges, she was uproariously funny. It seems Mark Samaras filled in at the eleventh hour to dance the role of Clive. What a huge talent – not just fluent and sometimes breathtaking technically but also a great actor, with an ability to provoke pathos as well as make us laugh.
As well as the aforementioned Rio Kai, the band comprised Emily Tran on keys, Patrick Boyle on drums and Parthenhope Wald-Harding on saxophone and flute. They were the icing on an already mouth-watering Christmas cake.
