The Nutcracker - Behind the Curtain

Tulsa Ballet's performances of The Nutcracker begin this weekend! Before you and your family head to the Tulsa PAC, learn more about the history of the Nutcracker and how Tulsa Ballet's beautiful production was created. Inspired by the city of Tulsa, this Nutcracker provides audiences with the exciting visuals of a Broadway show with the heartwarming story of a fairytale Christmas.

Tickets are selling fast! Performances December 10, 11, 17 and 18 at 2 p.m.; and December 16, 17, 22 and 23 at 7 p.m. at the Tulsa Performing Arts Center. Call 918-749-6030 to reserve your seats now! Or visit us online at www.tulsaballet.org. See you at the ballet!

Notes from Knox

Corps de Ballet Dancer Lawrence Knox shares with us the dancers' Thanksgiving weekend and preparing for The Nutcracker season!

*All images by Rosalie O'Connor

With Thanksgiving passing and the winter holidays swiftly approaching, we are reminded of all we have to be grateful for.  I took a few minutes to ask some of the dancers what they are thankful for and how they spent their four-day weekend. 

Joshua Stayton traveled to Cincinnati to visit his family with Jose Antonio Checa Romero.  They are both thankful for “family, friends, and the arts.”  

Joshua Stayton

Jose Antionio Checa Romero

Although distance prevented a big family celebration this year, Alexandra Bergman is thankful that her whole family is healthy.  She enjoyed this past weekend “doing mother daughter things with Sanya,” before the Nutcracker performances begin.    

Alexandra Bergman

There is no Thanksgiving in Japan, but since coming to the United States, it has become one of Hanae Seki’s favorite holidays.  For dinner, she cooked Japanese food with fellow dancer, Yoshihisa Arai.  She is thankful that dance has allowed her to have so many friends of different nationalities.  

Hanae Seki

Yoshihisa Arai

I drove home to Arkansas and spent a wonderful weekend with those who I am most thankful for, my family.  There was never a dull moment with five of us kids, my parents, grandparents, friends, five dogs, and two cats in the house. 

Now, back in the studio with tummies full of turkey, we return to Nutcracker rehearsals in full swing.  Although Tulsa Ballet’s version differs from the traditional story, it is just as magical, if not more, with the glamorous costumes, the extravagant scenery, and the different choreography.  The polonaise is more challenging and the second act demonstrates the strengths of the company members.   

Soo Youn Cho and Alfonso Martin dancing the roles of  Marie and Charles in The Nutcracker

I remember first seeing this Nutcracker with my mother when I was eleven and leaving the theater without a doubt in my mind that I wanted to be on that stage.  The next year my mom drove me to Tulsa each day in order to train with the school.  I will never forget when I received the letter saying that I would share the part of young Marie with two of my friends.  My mom had just picked my siblings and me up from school and we were pulling into the neighborhood when we stopped to get the mail.  That was only the beginning of the magic for me.   

This Nutcracker has always held a special place in my heart and I only wish the people of Tulsa will leave the theater as enchanted as I felt those nine years ago.     

Cooking with Caroline - Happy Thanksgiving

Here at the Tulsa Ballet studios, our halls have been filled with the patter of little mice feet as we prepare for The Nutcracker season. But before the mice and soldiers go off to battle beginning December 10th at the PAC, they're enjoying a short break with their families for Thanksgiving.

Our own Office & Facility Manager Caroline Crain shared with us one of her favorite Thanksgiving recipes - her Grandmother Owen's Corn Pudding. It's a family favorite as her 93 year old father asks for it every year. 

Corn Pudding

1 No. 2 can cream-style corn

1-1   ½ cups whole corn (frozen or fresh – NOT canned)

1T sugar

1 tsp salt

3 T melted butter (not margarine)

5         eggs, well beaten

3 cups whole milk (or 2 cups milk & 1 cup ½ & ½ )

1 T chopped pimento

1 T corn starch

1 T cold water

• Combine corn, sugar, salt, butter, pimento, eggs and milk.  Dissolve cornstarch in water and stir into corn mixture.

• Pour into a greased, shallow 2 quart baking dish.  Bake at 350 degrees for about 1 hour or until custard is firm. It should be a light golden brown on top.

• Yield 6-8 portions.  I usually double this and put it in a regular 9x13 pyrex dish.

This is a very lovely, light custard.  And it’s still good, rewarmed as a leftover. Have a happy Thanksgiving and see you at Nutcracker!

Barre Society - Rehearsal & Drinks with the Dancers

Local young professionals of The Barre Society gathered in Studio K for a private rehearsal viewing of Tulsa Ballet's principal dancer Ma Cong rehearsing his piece Calling on fellow company dancers. Set to Balkan-inspired music, Barre Society members commented on how unique and fun Cong's movements were, some of them even wishing to join the dancers on the stage and "groove" with them.

Following rehearsal, Urban Furnishings hosted a cocktail party for the Barre Society and dancers to mingle, enjoy champagne and converse over the beautiful furniture of Natuzzi Italia. Guests were greeted with a red carpet and photographers to capture the fun evening. By the end of the night, we welcomed some new members to The Barre Society!

Amber Buchanan and Barre Society Member Hannah Bledsoe

Tulsa Ballet Demi-Soloist Jonnathan Ramirez Mejia and Corps de Ballet Erin Pritchard.

Barre Society Members Jennifer Alden, Hilary Parkhurst, Dustin Thames and Christy Craig

Tulsa Ballet Principal Ma Cong and new Barre Society Members Sheila Zamanian and Thomas Landrum.

Barre Society Members Hillary Pane, Taheerah Salim with Carolyn Long.

 We are still inviting new members to join The Barre Society! For more information please contact Katie Selvidge at katie.selvidge@tulsaballet.org. Don't forget the half-season membership is only $150 - this gives you access to all of the spring events and tickets to all of the spring performances!

The Cygnet Society - Hip Hop & Shop

The Cygnet Society enjoyed their second dance workshop at Tulsa Ballet. This time they danced Hip Hop while their mothers enjoyed some Christmas shopping at Ribbons. The Cygnets learned a routine to Beyonce's latest hit Run the World (Girls) - fitting for this exceptional group of young women.

Write Your Own Review - Nine Sinatra Songs

Many of our audience members raved over this past weekend’s performances on our Facebook and Twitter sites. Alicia Chesser of Urban Tulsa and James Watts of Tulsa World wrote wonderful reviews of the triple bill performances. We want to hear from you! What was your favorite piece, music or dancer? Use the comment box below to write your own review of the ballets performed this weekend.

In the Middle, Somewhat Elevated -

Sechs Tanze -

Nine Sinatra Songs -

Nonsensical Poetry in Motion - "Sechs Tänze" by Jirí Kylián

Internationally acclaimed Jirí Kylián began his choreographic career at the Nederlands Dans Theater. Over the years, Kylián has become known for his unique and personal style as his works are profoundly based on musicality and poignantly reflect the mystery of human beings. Kylián has explained that the choreographer’s job is to explore “the extremities of our souls.” Sechs Tänze unveils hidden traces of humanity while providing a comedic, nonsensical flair that has entertained audiences across the globe. 

Nederlands Dans Theatre Rehearsal Director Roslyn Anderson set Sechs Tänze on Tulsa Ballet dancers. Companies Anderson has worked with include the San Francisco Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, National Ballet of Canada, Cullberg Ballet, Royal Swedish Ballet, The Royal Ballet, Rambert Dance Company, Paris Opera Ballet, Singapore Dance Theatre, The Australian Ballet, Compañia Nacional de Danza, and Royal Danish Ballet.

Here is a clip of rehearsal footage of the Tulsa Ballet dancers and an interview with Roslyn.

“Mr. Kylián’s works are the expression of the human soul and, as such, they touch each and every audience member in their core. We presented Petit Mort two years ago, a work of sublime poetry. With Sechs Tänze we are going to explore another side of Mr. Kylián’s personality: his unparalleled gift for humor.” – Tulsa Ballet Artistic Director Marcello Angelini

Words from Jirí Kylián -

Two centuries separate us from the time Mozart wrote his German Dances. A historical period shaped considerably by wars, revolutions and all sorts of upheavals. With this mind, I found it impossible to simply create different dance numbers reflecting merely the humor and musical brilliance of the composer. Instead, I have set six seemingly nonsensical acts, which obviously ignore their surroundings. They are dwarfed in face of the ever present troubled world, which most of us for some unspecified reason carry in our souls.

Although the entertaining quality of Mozart’s Sechs Tänze enjoys great general popularity, it shouldn’t only be regarded as a burlesque. Its humor ought to serve as a vehicle to point towards our relative values. Mozart’s ability to react upon difficult circumstances with a self-preserving outburst of nonsensical poetry is well known.

-Jirí Kylián

To enjoy this hilarious work as well as Twyla Tharp's classic Nine Sinatra Songs and William Forsythe's edgy in the middle, somewhat elevated,buy your tickets now by calling 918-749-6006. Or visit us online at Nine Sinatra Songswww.tulsaballet.org. Performances run from Oct. 28-30 at the Tulsa PAC.

Nine Sinatra Songs - Sneak Peak

Alfonso Martin and Soo Youn Cho

One of America’s most respected and recognized choreographers, Twyla Tharp has choreographed more than one hundred thirty-five dances (including Nine Sinatra Songs), five Hollywood movies, directed and choreographed four Broadway shows. She received one Tony Award, two Emmy Awards, nineteen honorary doctorates, the Vietnam Veterans of America President's Award, the 2004 National Medal of the Arts, the 2008 Jerome Robbins Prize, and a 2008 Kennedy Center Honor. 

With Nine Sinatra Songs, Tharp combines nine songs by Frank Sinatra and ballroom-inspired choreography to create an intimate view into each of the seven couple’s relationship. Original costumes, gowns and tuxedos, were designed by the great Oscar de la Renta to reflect the Sinatra era while enhancing Tharp’s sweeping to sharp movements. Created for the Twyla Tharp Dance company in 1982, this work is now a popular Tharp classic and is in the repetoire of companies around the world.    

“I chose songs only in arrangements from the 1950s,” Tharp has been quoted, “when my parents were still together, when all parents were together, the last time we assumed as a culture that of course men and women lived together and loved for a lifetime.”

Original Nine Sinatra Songs cast member Shelley Washington staged the ballet for the Tulsa Ballet dancers. Washington is one of a few experts on the Tharp repertoire. We had the chance to ask her a few questions about this classic piece and capture some rehearsal footage of Tulsa Ballet dancers Soo Youn Cho, Alfonso Martin, Sofia Menteguiaga and Wang Yi.

“Twyla Tharp’s works are a reflection of the American culture; they reflect the hearts and souls of the American people and traditions. Ms. Tharp has become an essential element of the cultural fabric of this country and is probably its leading ambassador, at least for our art form, worldwide.” – Tulsa Ballet Artistic Director Marcello Angelini

Performances run from October 28-30, 2011, at the Tulsa Performing Arts Center. Evening also features William Forsythe's In the Middle, Somewhat Elevated and Jiri Kylian's Sechs Tanze.  Purchase tickets by calling (918) 749-6006 or by visiting www.tulsaballet.org.