The Nutcracker (1993 film)

The Nutcracker
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Emile Ardolino
Written by	Susan Cooper (narration)
Produced by	Robert Hurwitz Robert A. Krasnow
Starring	Darci Kistler Damian Woetzel Kyra Nichols Bart Robinson Cook Macaulay Culkin Jessica Lynn Cohen New York City Ballet
Narrated by	Kevin Kline
Cinematography	Ralf D. Bode
Edited by	Girish Bhargava
Music by	Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Production companies	Warner Bros. Family Entertainment Elektra Entertainment Regency Enterprises
Distributed by	Warner Bros.
Release date	November 24, 1993 (1993-11-24)
Running time	92 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$19 million
Box office	$2,119,994

The Nutcracker, also known as George Balanchine's The Nutcracker, is a 1993 American Christmas musical film directed by Emile Ardolino. The film stars Darci Kistler, Damian Woetzel, Kyra Nichols, Wendy Whelan, Margaret Tracey, Gen Horiuchi and Tom Gold. The film was released by Warner Bros. on 24 November, 1993.

Below is a synopsis based on the original 1892 libretto by Marius Petipa. The story varies from production to production, though most follow the basic outline. The names of the characters also vary. In the original E.T.A. Hoffmann story, the young heroine is called Marie Stahlbaum and Clara (Klärchen) is her doll's name. In the adaptation by Dumas on which Petipa based his libretto, her name is Marie Silberhaus.[6] In still other productions, such as Baryshnikov's, Clara is Clara Stahlbaum rather than Clara Silberhaus.

Act I

Scene 1: The Stahlbaum Home

It is Christmas Eve. Family and friends have gathered in the parlor to decorate the beautiful Christmas tree in preparation for the party. Once the tree is finished, the children are sent for. They stand in awe of the tree sparkling with candles and decorations.

The party begins. A march is played. Presents are given out to the children. Suddenly, as the owl-topped grandmother clock strikes eight, a mysterious figure enters the room. It is Drosselmeyer, a local councilman, magician, and Clara's godfather. He is also a talented toymaker who has brought with him gifts for the children, including four lifelike dolls who dance to the delight of all. He then has them put away for safekeeping.

Clara and Fritz are sad to see the dolls being taken away, but Drosselmeyer has yet another toy for them: a wooden nutcracker carved in the shape of a little man, used for cracking nuts. The other children ignore it, but Clara immediately takes a liking to it. Fritz, however, purposely breaks it. Clara is heartbroken.

During the night, after everyone else has gone to bed, Clara returns to the parlor to check on her beloved nutcracker. As she reaches the little bed, the clock strikes midnight and she looks up to see Drosselmeyer perched atop it. Suddenly, mice begin to fill the room and the Christmas tree begins to grow to dizzying heights. The nutcracker also grows to life-size. Clara finds herself in the midst of a battle between an army of gingerbread soldiers and the mice, led by their King. They begin to eat the soldiers.

The nutcracker appears to lead the soldiers, who are joined by tin ones and dolls who serve as doctors to carry away the wounded. As the Mouse King advances on the still-wounded nutcracker, Clara throws her slipper at him, distracting him long enough for the nutcracker to stab him.

Scene 2: A Pine Forest

The mice retreat and the nutcracker is transformed into a handsome Prince. He leads Clara through the moonlit night to a pine forest in which the snowflakes dance around them, beckoning them on to his kingdom as the first act ends.

Act II

Scene 1: The Land of Sweets

Clara and the Prince travel to the beautiful Land of Sweets, ruled by the Sugar Plum Fairy in his place until his return. He recounts for her how he had been saved from the Mouse King by Clara and had been transformed back into his own self.

In honor of the young heroine, a celebration of sweets from around the world is produced: chocolate from Spain, coffee from Arabia, and tea from China all dance for their amusement; candy canes from Russia; Danish shepherdesses perform on their flutes; Mother Ginger has her children, the Polichinelles, emerge from under her enormous hoop skirt to dance; a string of beautiful flowers perform a waltz. To conclude the night, the Sugar Plum Fairy and her Cavalier perform a dance.

A final waltz is performed by all the sweets, after which the Sugar Plum Fairy usher Clara and the Prince down from their throne. He bows to her, she kisses Clara goodbye, and leads them to a reindeer drawn sleigh. It takes off as they wave goodbye to all the subjects who wave back.

In the original libretto, the ballet's apotheosis "represents a large beehive with flying bees, closely guarding their riches".[19] Just like Swan Lake, there have been various alternative endings created in productions subsequent to the original.

Cast

• Darci Kistler as The Sugarplum Fairy
• Damian Woetzel as The Sugarplum Fairy's Cavalier
• Kyra Nichols as Dewdrop
• Wendy Whelan as Coffee
• Margaret Tracey as Marzipan
• Gen Horiuchi as Tea
• Tom Gold as Candy Cane
• Lourdes López as Hot Chocolate
• Nilas Martins as Hot Chocolate
• William Otto as Mother Ginger
• Peter Reznick as Fritz
• Karin von Aroldingen as Grandparent
• Edward Bigelow as Grandparent
• Heather Watts as Frau Stahlbaum
• Robert LaFosse as Dr. Stahlbaum
• Bart Robinson Cook as Drosselmeier
• Jessica Lynn Cohen as Marie Stahlbaum
• Macaulay Culkin as The Nutcracker / Drosselmeier's Nephew
• Kevin Kline as Narrator
• Katrina Killian as Harlequin
• Roma Sosenko as Columbine
• Michael Byars as Soldier
• Robert D. Lyon as Mouse King

Reception

Critical response

The Nutcracker received generally mixed reviews from critics. Based on seven reviews, the film holds a rotten rating of 57% on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, with an average rating of 6.3/10. The film was criticized by James Berardinelli for not capturing the excitement of a live performance; he wrote that it "opts to present a relatively mundane version of the stage production... utilizing almost none of the advantages offered by the (film) medium." Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times criticized the film for not adapting the dance for a film audience and also its casting of Culkin who, he writes, "seems peripheral to all of the action, sort of like a celebrity guest or visiting royalty, nodding benevolently from the corners of shots." In The Washington Post, Lucy Linfield echoed Ebert's criticism of Culkin, stating that "it's not so much that he can't act or dance; more important, the kid seems to have forgotten how to smile... All little Mac can muster is a surly grimace." She praised the dancing, however, as "strong, fresh and in perfect sync" and Kistler's Sugar Plum Fairy as "the Balanchinean ideal of a romantic, seemingly fragile beauty combined with a technique of almost startling strength, speed and knifelike precision." The New York Times' Stephen Holden also criticized Culkin, calling his performance the film's "only serious flaw", but praised the cinematography as "very scrupulous in the way it establishes a mood of participatory excitement, then draws back far enough so that the classic ballet sequences choreographed by Balanchine and staged by Peter Martins can be seen in their full glory."

Box office

During its theatrical run the film grossed $2,119,994. In North America, the film opened at number 16 in its first weekend with $783,721.

External links

• The Nutcracker at IMDb
• The Nutcracker at the TCM Movie Database