BE PART OF THE MAGIC THIS HOLIDAY SEASON!
José Mateo Ballet Theatre’s production honors the classical tradition while putting an innovative interpretation on this holiday icon. With performances at local schools as well as two incredible Boston theatres, everyone can be a part of the magic this holiday season!
History of The Nutcracker
Published in 1916, E.T.A. Hoffman’s Nutcracker and Mouse King is the source of inspiration for The Nutcracker ballet, set to Peter Tchaikovsky’s magnificent score, first presented in St. Petersburg in 1892. The Nutcracker made its American debut in New York City in 1940.
Our Interpretation
José Mateo Ballet Theatre honors the classical tradition by continuing what may well be New England’s longest running interpretation of The Nutcracker ballet. Following its 1988 premiere in Fall River, various tours throughout the state with regular performances in Springfield, Worcester, and Lowell, and a ten-year run at Boston’s Emerson Majestic Theatre, the production quickly distinguished itself as one of the first versions anywhere to focus more on the dancing than on the usual caricatured mime, pomp, and special effects of its predecessors. Even the cast of over 100 children who play the Mice, Soldiers, Cherubs, Polichinelles, and Clara have substantial dancing roles.
While José Mateo Ballet Theatre takes pride in its ongoing mission to create new classical ballets, it is a pleasure to return each year to The Nutcracker as a salute to the traditional roots of the ballet form. After nearly a thousand performances over the last 30 years, we have created a tradition of our own. Families return year after year to revisit Mother Ginger and her children, the dancing snowflakes, the waltzing flowers, and the Sugar Plum Fairy with her cavalier.