Houston Ballet Presents the Nutcracker Tickets

New as if I hadn’t seen before! Great show, learn something new every time.

I took my daughter to see this show for the first time. I enjoyed the event but my daughter left with mixed feelings. The first part does not have much dancing and is more story telling. My daughter found it very boring. However, the second part of the show was more impressive. There was more dancing and my daughter was more engaged. I did leave a little disappointed with the sound system of the venue. This is the second time I attend an event there and I felt the sound was not impressive.

Couldn’t see the dancers legs most of the time because they were wearing long billowy dresses. Very poor choices in costumes. Couldn’t appreciate the dance moves and athleticism (because you couldn’t see what their legs were doing...only feet) so it felt like you were watching a silent play. Boring. There were a few scenes with tutus—-and the show came alive—but not enough. Been to a lot of dance performances in my life and this was by far my least favorite for the aforementioned reasons.

As a frequenter of the Houston Ballet and the Nutcracker, I was very excited for a new rendition of the ballet that got me loving the ballet. Unfortunately, I was sorely disappointed. Let me begin by saying that I was expecting something to be different. I was expecting different costumes, sets, and even some fresh choreography while maintaining the signature pieces. What I received was a school play with a multi-million dollar set budget. That may sound cold but let me break the experience down. The first act could have been cut almost altogether. The dancers spent more time just meandering around the stage than dancing. The entire first half was confusing. When intermission started, I found myself asking what was going on? I KNOW the story of the nutcracker like the back of my hand and I was utterly confused by some parts. We’re the toys being turned big in a magic box? It certainly seemed so... then Clara turned small (with the whole tree and presents growing- that effect was very cool, I must admit!) Also, there was supposed to be a very straight-forward progression of the toy nutcracker coming to life then becoming a prince. But the toy was brought to life before our eyes, then turned back into a toy, then to life, then to a prince (which happened when the rat army nearly killed him? How does that evolution work?) The Rat King’s crown was obsessed over, which was weird. They edited many of the signature dances which are classic to the nutcracker ballet. I don’t know if it was altered because the dancers couldn’t pull them off or if it was intentional. Lastly, they added many child parts to the ballet. I like kids, I really do, but putting a half dozen tots in bumble bee costumes and having them run around the stage while dancers are trying to actually do ballet was juvenile and made me feel like I was watching a school play. What was with the slapstick comedy? Since when was the nutcracker a comedy ballet? In the end, I get that the intention was to appeal to kids and to a wider audience but I noticed that the kids in the seats around me didn’t sit still and pay attention until the actual dancing would leave them in awe. Kids can appreciate genuine beauty and making it a watered-down version doesn’t make it better.

For the price of the tickets, I missed the professionalism of more adult dancers. We enjoyed the 2nd act more than the first. First was a bit underwhelming. Lots of young dancers were given a wonderful opportunity to participate. However, that’s a $50 ticket & not a $125 ticket. I can see that in our local ballet company’s productions. The sets were gorgeous & definitely portrayed a dream world. But it seemed more Cirque du Soleil than ballet. Lots going on all of the time. The primary dancers were wonderful. If I’d had grandchildren with me, I think they’d have enjoyed watching all of the children. Not sure I wouldve paid that price, however. I did miss the exactness & jaw dropping Ben Stevenson production. It was just more commanding & crisp. Storyline was simpler & easy to follow. This had a lot of visual interest to keep children enthralled. We just weren’t ‘wowed’! I was also disappointed with the view from our seats in the Orchestra section, row P. I selected those with the idea that we’d be far enough back to watch the dancers’ feet. Unfortunately, we couldn’t see them & our view was further blocked by the stage lights along the front of the stage. I spent more time watching the large screens in either side. I could’ve done that at home for free. We ran into friends who were a few rows in front & they commented that our seats were much better than theirs. It’s so exciting to have these types of shows coming to our area since we live in Sugar Land. Perhaps there can be adjustments made to the stage to allow the audience to see all of the dancers & not just shin & up. It didn’t seem to be a stage built for a ballet. Cut out some of the ‘cuteness’ & give us a bit more precision & awe us again.

This performance was magical. We have seen other productions of The Nutcracker but this was amazing. The performances were wonderful and the costumes and sets were beautiful. The staff at the center were attentive and thoughtful. It was a wonderful Christmas gift to my girls.

Very entertaining production of the Nutcracker, I. e. performers skill, children's participation,set design, costumes, music were outstanding.

Phenomenal Ballet! Talented performers! First Class venue!!! No seat is a bad seat.

It was amazing , last time I saw nutcracker it was two years ago when it wAs the original. Now, it’s bigger and more beautiful!

This was my first time to the Houston Ballet. I enjoyed it immensely! The dancers, the costumes, and the music was fabulous! I will be going to more of their performances. Excellent job!