Birmingham Royal Ballet enchants in Peter Wright's The Nutcracker

Birmingham Royal Ballet in Sir Peter Wright's The Nutcracker

Birmingham Royal Ballet in the Snow Scene of Sir Peter Wright's The Nutcracker

Céline Gittens as The Sugar Plum Fairy in Sir Peter Wright's The Nutcracker

By Deborah Weiss, 01 January 2025

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“led by a radiant, exquisite Yu Kurihara as The Rose Fairy”

Reviewed at Royal Albert Hall, London on 29 December 2024

The Nutcracker (Marius Petipa, Lev Ivanov, Sir Peter Wright, Vincent Redmon)

Birmingham Royal Ballet

Paul Murphy, Conductor

Dick Bird, Set Designer

John Macfarlane, Costume Designer

Peter Teigen, Lighting Designer

Royal Ballet Sinfonia

Yasiel Hodelín Bello, Dancer

Sofia Liñares, Dancer

Céline Gittens, Dancer

Max Maslen, Dancer

American Ballet Theatre's double bill is short and sweet in New York

Ivy Lin, 15th March

American Ballet Theatre presents Balanchine's Raymonda: Grand Pas Hongrois and Ratmansky's Firebird which showcases the company well and provides a strong contrast.

****1

Mejia debuts in a sumptuous Sleeping Beauty at New York City Ballet

Carla Escoda, 12th February

Roman Mejia and a raft of soloist debuts galvanized Peter Martins' Sleeping Beauty. An elegant production with some incidental messiness and the structural liability of a princess' dependence on a kiss.

****1

Dutch National Ballet brings much needed heat to this winter season

Mark Vicente, 10th February

The Dutch National Ballet helped shake off those winter blues with a mixed programme that highlighted ballet’s love affair with Latin rhythms and movement.

****1

NYCB: Balanchine + Ratmansky program warms the audience

Ivy Lin, 20th January

NYCB has a winning triple bill with its Balanchine + Ratmansky program. Excellent dancing and contrasting works sends the audience home in buoyant mood.

*****

Ballet Nights, The New Year’s Day Concert: a win on all fronts

Deborah Weiss, 1st January

Jamiel Devernay-Laurence’s winning formula for his Ballet Nights series has brought in new and old works, concert and dance, and continues to push the boundaries into 2026.

****1

NEBT’s Nutcracker: pared down, efficient and exuberant

Deborah Weiss, 18th December

Valentino Zucchetti's Nutcracker for New English Ballet Theatre's may be economical on numbers but the cast make up for it in commitment.

***11

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Deborah Weiss

Deb joined Bachtrack in 2022 and commissions reviews and writing on ballet and dance. She was Royal Ballet School-trained and is a former principal dancer for companies including London Festival Ballet (now English National Ballet) and Bayerisches Staatsballett. She has been writing for more than 30 years – publications have included Dancing Times, DanceTabs, Dance for You and Dance Europe. She also interviews for Voices of British Ballet, an oral archive of people who have worked in the industry in the UK. In addition to her writing, since 2016 she has been facilitating programmes that support victims of domestic abuse. Deb is passionate about her rescue dog, Bruce, and daughters (not in that order), swims a mile at least five days a week and is an avid reader.