Loyce Houlton's Nutcracker Fantasy Tickets

Wonderful, memorable but hey, my family and I have attended with children and grandchildren for years.

I absolutely loved it!!! The dancing was spectacular, as well as the orchestra. I can’t imagine a Christmas holiday without Loyce Houlton’s Nutcracker. It’s my favorite thing about this time of year and has been a family tradition for at least a decade.

Dancing, orchestra, costumes, lighting and sets all high quality. The only thing that disappointed was slow lines to get a beverage at intermission. Skip the alcohol at a family matinee and line up the soft drinks ready to go. Or have more or separate lines.

This is the best Nutcracker in the Twin Cities!! We have seen many all over MN and US, this production is our favorite. The live orchestra, costumes and gorgeous dancers in the beautiful State Theatre never disappoints.

You know how people in NYC go to see the Rockettes year after year at Radio City Music Hall? Because it's their Christmas tradition? Well, year after year my daughter and I have attended Loyce Houlton's Nutcracker Fantasty. I want to address the other reviewers here. My daugher is a full time actress. We attend plays annually in NYC. We know what is good and what is not. This performance year after year always amazes us. We love it! Everytime Mom opens the doors to the Christmas Fantasy behind the curtain (that the kids are trying to peer though) makes me cry. No, this is not NYC, this is Minnesota. And this is Minnesota at it's best. This is the event that folks in the Twin Cities attend year after year. This is our Twin Cities Christmas Tradition. Go and enjoy!

It was very disappointing to watch this. I have gone to this performance since I married my husband Keane 15 years ago. The plot was hard to follow and the dancers were unexpirienced

We were extremely disappointed to have to forfeit all ELEVEN of our tickets to the Friday, December 23rd performance! Living in southern Minnesota, all roads were closed & NO TRAVEL advisories were issued. Very sad to have our family Christmas plans spoiled through no fault of our own & no customer support.

So many Nutcrackers... a lifetime of them. I would truly rank Loyce Houlton's Nutcracker Fantasy at the top of the list. From the entry into the beautifully glittering and historic State Theatre to the final curtain, it was an absolute treat. The colorful sets and costumes matched the joy of the season and the live orchestra was fantastic. The dancers were altogether beautiful and graceful, powerful and sprite-like, whimsical and adorable. It is always encouraging to have a full house supporting the hard work and dedication of the artists, directors, teachers, parents and support staff. Make plans to attend!

I think lack of props and background scenery made the story hard to follow. I’ve seen this ballet in many different locations and this was not telling the true Nutcracker story. The performers were wonderful dancers but the story made no sense. So much is changed it should be renamed. We will find a new city with real version next year.

This is the most fun Nutcracker I've ever attended. SO many children were a part of it, and many many students, and yet there were also enough professional ballet dancers to make it top notch in quality. The production was light-hearted while absolutely keeping with the original story. And the music!! Incredible. I plan to go back next year for sure!!

So in love with every dancer and musician! This orchestra is so powerful and plays so beautifully. It is so awesome and transporting to soak up this experience I keep coming back and bringing others! This is my favorite.

A perfect evening. Look forward to attending every year.

As the world crumbles around us, this show is a timely reminder that life can still be dreamy and beautiful, full of mystery and pretty colors. Thanks!

AS always the dancing was exceptional. There were fewer dancers on stage and although the dancers did their best to fill the stage, something was missing. In addition, there was nothing on the stage as they were on their fantasy voyage. It felt unfinished, sad almost. Even my 6 year old grand daughter felt it. I love this performance and I love the Loyce Houlton show, but, if I saw this for the first time, I would chose to look at another performance somewhere else to view the Nutcracker.

We have attended approximately 25 Nutcracker performances throughout the last 30 years. This performance was unfortunately very disappointing, especially given we drove over 300 miles to attend this. It's hard to not be enthused about this beloved ballet, and the music of Tchaikovsky, but this performance was disappointing and flat. The choreography did not illustrate an effective telling of this story, and certainly was not in synch with the music. The initial set in the first act was good, but it became extremely boring after the 1st act. The costumes were uninspired, unmagical. Except for the dance that portrayed the rat king, the dancing was mediocre. The snow princess did not look happy or inspired on stage, and it seemed as if she and the prince were having some sort of personality problem with them. There were not the lifts or movements that enhance the music. The Rat King was very good. We were unsure of why the choreography was so flat, and if it was designed to reflect the talents (or lack there of) of the dances. The children in general were good. One of the things we look for is a live orchestra instead of recorded music. Using microphones diluted the experience of a live orchestra and I wished I had known that ahead of time as I would have chosen another performance company. The clarinets (not the bass) and flutes sounded good; however, one of the bassoon players had a very "wonky" tone, almost nasally, which distracted from the overall performance. Given these issues, we will look for different companies around the Midwest for next year. If you're looking for a truly exceptional Nutcracker experience, Milwaukee Ballet has one of the best performances we have ever attended.

The dancing, orchestra, costumes, scenery are exceptional! I attend every year and this production never disappoints! Thank you to all The artists involved.

This was a very professional show. Great family holiday entertainment.

Our granddaughters enjoy the Nutcracker music a lot. However, they did not enjoy the ballet as much as we thought they would. We discovered that they really did not know the story and they missed having someone (narrator) tell the story as it unfolded. So we learned that we need to make sure that they know the story of any ballet that we go to see so that they can enjoy all of the nuances of the performance. This adaptation was beautifully done and the adults enjoyed it immensely.

The fight between king rat and nutcracker was too short

I have been going to this production since I was a little girl and Loyce was still around to take curtain calls. This is the only Nutcracker ballet I can watch, since when I see other versions, the choreography seems wrong. I no longer go every year, but I go every few. This year I brought my daughters, who were in dance themselves. I am fine with the children performers and expect it, but this production was disappointing. There were bright spots - the orchestra was fantastic, Marie was better than usual, though it was odd to see Marie en pointe, which I had never seen before. The French doll was exceptional. The Sugar Plum Fairy was good, but nothing made her shine, and her Prince Charming was downright clumsy. The Arabian dancers were lovely. Putting a small acrobat in for one of the Russian dancers was not a good move. While it received the biggest response of the show, so would have 3 talented adult dancers doing the original challenging dance. It all looked simplified and a bit sloppy. I've never had that experience in all my years, so I hope this was just an off year.