Nutcracker
Friday, December 15 at 7 p.m. / Saturday, December 16 at 2 p.m.
Choreography: Gregory Amato, after Marius Petipa
Music: Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Scenario: Gregory Amato, based on E.T.A. Hoffmann’s original story
PROGRAM
Synopsis
ACT I
It’s Christmas Eve, and Fräuline Drosselmeyer works frantically in her workshop putting finishing touches on this year’s gifts for the family gathering.
At the Stahlbaum home, Clara, Fritz, Louis, and their parents welcome guests to their annual Christmas party. Drosselmeyer and her niece arrive with gifts for the children, and a wooden Nutcracker for Clara. The party is filled with joyful dancing, and the magic that Drosselmeyer brings. Before Clara and Fritz head off to bed, Drosselmeyer re-emerges with one final gift: an enchanted book she has lovingly created just for them.
As the children read through the night, the stories in the book come to life. Before their eyes, a horde of giant mice scurry from the shadows. Suddenly, the Nutcracker and his battalion appear, now magically grown to life-size to defend the household. The Rat Queen emerges and challenges the Nutcracker to a duel. The clashing of their swords escalates to an ominous crescendo. Once the battle has ended, the Snow King and Queen appear and summon a storm of dancing snowflakes to whisk the children away to the magical Land of the Sweets.
Intermission
ACT II
Once the children arrive, they are welcomed by a cast of wondrous characters, including the Sugar Plum Fairy and her Cavalier. The Sweets dance for the children in celebration of the arrival of their new friends. As Clara, Fritz, and Louis reach the end of the story, they close the book fondly as Drosselmeyer dreams of magical chapters for holidays to come.
Cast
Clara: Hannah Jiang•, Alice Lynagh◊
Fritz: Olivia Caulfield◊, Audrey Stoll•
Louis: Maria Fanourgiakis◊, Tianna Singh•
Herr & Frau Stahlbaum: Evan Johnston & Chloé Watson
Fräulein Drosselmeyer: Minna Rogers
Drosselmeyer’s Niece: Maya Rogers
Party Guests: Léna Alvino, Jenna Brandt, Sasha Lane, James Santiago, Arjun Sheth, Grace Thompson, Phoenix Wilkins
Party Children: Maya Chen, Sienna Geheran, Lorin Ozulku•, Luci Singh•, Ruby Skulpone, Keira Sweany, Emmalyn Toda•, Yuri Yoneyama, Naomi Zhao•
Dowager: Keiko Schmid
Maid: Valentina Bonaldi
Ballerina Doll: Hollie Rudolph
Harlequin Doll: Alyssa-Marie Muña
Mice: Heather Hu◊, Aliyah Lim◊, Caitlyn Liu•, Maiqi Luo◊, Elise Maestas◊, Mia Meisenheimer, Sinjini Mitra◊, Mei Narushima•, Lorin Ozulku•, Aanya Satpathy◊, Chloe Schultze, Aria Sullivan•, Givi Sullivan•, Claire Tian•, Emmalyn Toda, Everett Wolfe, Adeline Yeh•, Naomi Zhao, Hannah Zhou◊
Transition Dolls: Mia Curtis, Chloe Schwerin, Luci Singh, Samantha Wolff
Lead Soldier: Diamond Zhou
Soldiers: Sasha Arbo, Sophie Chang-Blake, Kelly Chung, Alexa Geheran, Sienna Geheran, Kimi Makins, Zeynep Patton, Maya Rogers, Anniyah Singh, Tabitha Smith, Keira Sweany, Winnifred Wolfe, Weini Xing, Leah Yang, Yuri Yoneyama
Nutcracker: Phoenix Wilkins
Rat Queen: Kelley Hashemi
Snow Queen: Naomi Sailors
Snow King: Evan Johnston
Snowflakes: Léna Alvino, Jenna Brandt, Melia Kramer, Sasha Lane, Alyssa-Marie Muña, Hollie Rudolph, Grace Thompson, Chloé Watson
Snowman: Mia Meisenheimer◊, Naomi Zhao•
Sugar Plum Fairy: Kelley Hashemi
Cavalier: Juan Carlos Magacho
Sugar Plum Attendant: Diamond Zhou
Rose: Alyssa-Marie Muña
Cherubs: Aliyah Lim◊, Caitlyn Liu•, Maiqi Luo◊, Elise Maestas◊, Aanya Satpathy◊, Aria Sullivan•, Givi Sullivan•, Claire Tian•, Emmalyn Toda•, Hannah Zhou◊
Angels: Sophie Chang-Blake•, Maya Chen•, Kelly Chung◊, Sienna Geheran◊, Maya Rogers◊, Anniyah Singh•, Ruby Skulpone•, Tabitha Smith◊, Keira Sweany◊, Winnifred Wolfe•, Weini Xing•, Leah Yang◊
Flower Fairies: Valentina Bonaldi, Mia Curtis, Chloe Lau, Chloe Schwerin, Luci Singh, Samantha Wolff, Yuri Yoneyama
Chocolate: Sasha Lane, Hollie Rudolph, Grace Thompson
Coffee: Léna Alvino, Evan Johnston
Tea: Jenna Brandt, Chloe Lau, Melia Kramer
Marzipan: Naomi Sailors, Chloé Watson
Trepak: Phoenix Wilkins with Olivia Caulfield•, Luci Singh◊, Alice Lynagh•, Audrey Stoll◊
Mother Ginger: Masha Baratoshvilli Amato
Chefs: Sasha Arbo•, Alexa Geheran◊, Kimi Makins◊, Zeynep Patton•
Bonbons: Heather Hu◊, Mia Meisenheimer◊, Sinjini Mitra◊, Mei Narushima•, Lorin Ozulku•, Chloe Schultze◊, Everett Wolfe•, Adeline Yeh•, Naomi Zhao•
Flowers: Léna Alvino, Jenna Brandt, Melia Kramer, Sasha Lane, Hollie Rudolph, Naomi Sailors, Grace Thompson, Chloé Watson
Casting notes:
◊ December 15th performance only
•December 16th performance only
Grace Thompson appears courtesy of Diablo Ballet.
Staff
Executive Producing Director and CEO: Christine Leslie
Chief Financial Officer: Jan Mendez
Marketing Director: Michael Davis
Public Relations: Jon Finck
Webmaster: Maria Nichols
Facilities Manager: Lance Huntley
Box Office: Masha Baratoshvilli Amato
Bookkeeper: Annette Mellado
Peninsula School of the Arts
School Manager: Léna Alvino
School Administrator: Shannon Briesach Schueller
Ballet Faculty: Léna Alvino, Gregory Amato, Masha Baratoshvilli Amato, Melia Kramer, Alyssa-Marie Muña, Verónica Quevedo, Minna Rogers, Chloé Watson
Hip-Hop Faculty: Robbie Rosenmiller, Matthew “Ninja” Sutton
Musical Theater Faculty: Minna Rogers
Tap Faculty: Katelin Foley, Verónica Quevedo
Peninsula Ballet Theatre
Artistic Director: Gregory Amato
Ballet Mistress: Nina Amato
Company Manager: Chloé Watson
Peninsula Hip-Hop Productions
Artistic Director: Stuck Sanders
Peninsula Broadway Theater
Artistic Director: Gary Stanford, Jr.
Crew
Technical Director: Dave LeBlanc
Stage Manager: Danielle Combs
Lighting Designer & Light Board Operator: Max Pereira
Audio Operator: Richard Healy
Backstage Manager: Kay Tetzner
House Manager: Jeff Stoll, Tinka Blackmond
Wardrobe: Nina Amato, Nina Baratoff, Christine Leslie, Yuki Suzuki
Prop Master: Rich Schwerin
Deck: Jorgé Narez-Rodriquez, Ruben Narez-Rodriquez, D’Andre Hernandez, Brian Yang, Ellesandro
Volunteer Coordinators: Jenny Peralta, Michelle Sweany
Boutique Coordinators: Yuki Horiguchi, Leslie Kramer
