Ballet Opinions
First, a disclaimer: I am a total novice at Having Opinions About Ballet. I know there are many people who are deeply passionate about this art form, and have developed very fine-grained thoughts about it, and I am simply not one of them. But here we go anyway!!
The Best Nutcracker
I like The Nutcracker a lot, but it has... pretty obvious problems. Last year I began a quest to find the best (filmed) version of The Nutcracker. So far the contenders are (sorted by choreographer):
- Mikhail Baryshnikov, the American Ballet Theatre, 1977
- George Balachine, the New York City Ballet, 2011
- Vasili Vainonen, the Mariinsky Ballet, 2012
- Yuri Grigorovich, the Bolshoi Ballet, 1989
- Helgi Tomassen, the San Francisco Ballet, 2007
- Peter Wright, the Royal Ballet, 2009
- Rudolf Nureyev, the Wiener Staatsballett, 2014
- Pär Isberg, the Royal Swedish Ballet, 1999
- Mark Morris' The Hard Nut, 1992
- Kirill Simonov, the Mariinsky Ballet, 2008
- Peter Martins, Barbie in the Nutcracker, 2001
Baryshnikov and Nureyev are very similar, in that these are world-class ballerino's who clearly know how to choreograph male parts to suit their own strengths, but are otherwise out of their depths, leading to overall awkward/stilted choreography and odd deviations from the usual plot. The Baryshnikov is at least worth watching to see Mikhail's titular performance; sadly the only recording of Nureyev doing his own choreo is of very poor quality.
I also find the Balachine and Wright productions to be very similar, in that they're OK, but not very memorable; are too plotty for my liking; have too much mime (the refuge of a choreographer without clear ideas); lean too heavily on precocious children; and are generally a little messy when compared to the smooth efficiency of other choreographies. Of the two, I prefer Balachine, but I don't quite remember why...
The Vainonen and Grigorovich are quite classic and traditional-feeling, as they hew closest to the original libretto in structure, setting, and characterizations. Yet they're not boring: each features several novel variations on the standard dances, and moves at good pace. They also sport a cohesion between music and action which is oddly lacking in the previously-mentioned productions. Vainonen pulls ahead though: his choreography is so lovely and fluid, whereas Grigorovich has trouble transitioning between dances, and feels rather too cold and empty.
Since I'm lumping things together in two's, let me also pair Tomassen and Isberg. Both have reworked the story to fit the local setting (the 1915 San Francisco World's Fair, and the Swedish children's book Peter and Lotta's Christmas, respectively), and have created surprisingly unique dances to match. Yet they still operate within the framework of classic ballet, and evoke a nostalgic christmas atmosphere. Tomassen is certainly worth watching, but Isberg clearly outshines in quality: it's easily on par with Vainonen in artistry and execution, and it's 100% less racist, to boot!
Morris and Simonov both go for a darker, more modern twist. The Hard Nut is supposedly influenced by the sexually-tinged horror comics of Charles Burns, but this doesn't really translate: instead you get a fun and funky passion project with moments of genuine romance, performed by a gender-egalitarian ballet company. The Simonov was panned at its release for being too grim and sexual, but the critics exaggrate (it's only sort-of implied that the characters get eaten by rats in the end). It is, however, delightfully grotesque, with art direction by painter Mihail Chemiakin, and interesting modern ballet choreography.
Barbie is here mostly as a joke. Mostly. Because Peter Martins is a legitimate choreographer, and the dancing in the film was created through motion capture of New York City Ballet dancers! It holds up pretty well as a kids film, despite the early CGI aesthetic, and it skirts the usual racism issues which plague The Nutcracker.
Final Verdict: Vainonen is the best classical version, Isberg is the best revisionist version (and the least racist). Additionally, Tomassen has the best storytelling, Morris has the best romance, and Simonov is the most pleasantly dark-sided.