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This was an excellent program with the stark contrast between the Four Temperaments in the first half followed by A Midsummer Night's Dream. Christopher Stowell's gorgeous choreography, the adaptation of the story, the perfectly executed live music, and many adorable moments combined to make an absolutely wonderful performance, and a highly enjoyable evening.
Honestly speaking, this was my first ballet to attend and it was a true pleasure. My family members had attended different Nutcrackers at different venues, and they said this was the best they had seen. We had amazing seats, but after looking at the size of the Keller auditorium, I imagine any seat would have been fine. The dancers, from the kids, all the way to the principal dancers were amazing-possibly well rehearsed as we went on the final day. Once again, a wonderful perfomance.
It was my dad's first trip to the ballet! I did see a few mistakes and I really missed the live music but it was a great performance.
Overall it was a good performance - the dancing was wonderful - but I really miss the live music, especially at the very beginning. The recording isn't bad, but it doesn't even come close to live. At least last year they let people know they weren't getting it - I guess this year they figured no one cared, which isn't true. The only other complaint I have is the couple sitting beside us who were kissing (passionately), had their legs wrapped around each other, the guy had his shoes off -- at least his feet didn't stink!. I felt bad for the people sitting in back of them, especially for the young women. Totally inappropriate for this type of performance. I know this isn't the fault of OBT, but thought I'd tell you anyway.
At these ticket prices, I would expect a live orchestra. Canned music, really? I was 5 rows from the front and could not see over the heads. Very poor seating arrangement. I have seen many versions of The Nutcracker, and this one was a nice production. The venue is horrible and the canned music, inexcusable. The dancing was mostly good, with The Waltz of the Flowers being outstanding. Don't care too much for the Chinese or Arabian dances in this version. And although in some versions the first act can be very boring, this one kept my interest. The snow scene was fabulous.
Very fine show. Marvelous stage craft. Particularly when the had a section of the stage floor move such that the Sugar Plum Fairy apperared to be on point on one foot and then float across the stage. I was very impressed with the young dancer who played the nutcracker, when he "told the story" of defeating Rat King all eyes on and off stage were on him and he did a marvelous job!
This was my first time seeing the nutcracker ballet and i have to say that it was incredible. The dancers were amazing and the story was beautiful. I can't wait to see it next year.
The actual ballet part of The Nutcracker was lacking or just missing. Some applause seemed more obligatory than spontaneous. Art direction was stellar and the snow scene at the end of the first act was one for the ages...
Music was prerecorded (no live orchestra) and sounded extremely flat. The first half of the performance was mostly children running and jumping around (not much dancing), and we felt that we were watching a high school performance at best. The second half was better, but not great. Most of the principle dancers were very good, and it was a joy to see their talent.
I have only been to a few nutcracker ballets in my time. One being in Alberta at a much smaller University setting. In comparison this nutcracker was lacking in many areas. The beginning scene (the party) there was hardly any dancing, which set the tone for the rest of the performance. Overall: The costumes were bland There was no real nutcracker dancer, just a little boy (who did great, but honestly) The scenes were cheap ( a fake tree for one) The Mother Ginger was acting like a fool (not appropriate for a ballet) Their were no really good male dancers. I could go on for a while here. Needless to say, my mom, sister, daughter and I talked about how disappointed we were all the way home. I will not go again.
Canned music? Really? For the price of these tickets, there should be a live orchestra. The dancing is lovely and the set is very nice. The auditorium itself does not lend to the price of the tickets either. I sat 5 rows from the front and could not see over the heads in front of me. Everybody was craning their necks to try to get a better view. It was really ridiculous. I will not attend again at this venue.
I have never seen the Nutcracker before. My son and I went and enjoyed it very much. The dancing and costumes were beautiful!
Ok, I'm nuts about Nutcracker and Oregon Ballet. However, must agree with PDxNative: I greatly miss the live orchestra in the pit and this is the only reason I didn't give the 5th star. Music from speakers just doesn't feel the same. And, "the only disappointment I had was the canned music. The sets were fabulous." Oregon Ballet needs to get realistic for next year. LOWER THE PRICES amongst the various dates overall and bring the Orchestra back!
I haven't been to the Portland Nutcracker performance in probably 3 years and this was considerably lower quality than it used to be in the past. Some portions were eliminated and there were some substitutions which were not as good as the traditional Nutcrackers I have seen at Portland, Seattle or Phoenix area performances.
I paid alot of money and never saw the orchestra. I'm beginning to think it was not live. This was a new version of the nutcracker-shortened. The dancers were young and mildly experienced. The stage sets outweighed the performance. I have seen the nutcracker almost every year for 30 years and it was my first disappointment. I would not return to the Portland ballet. I had better expectations of the performance from a big city, Eugene, OR performance outweighed this. So sorry.
Very Enjoyable. As good as we've seen in NY. True to Balanchine's choreography. Georgeous costumes & very professional. Missed the live orchestra.
The amount of actual dance was limited. Mostly children skipping about. No live music! Will not make the same mistake next year.
Overall I enjoyed this performance. However, there were some little changes that I didn't like, such as changing the main characters name to Maria. The Nutcracker is just not the same without Clara. Also, on the way to the The Land of Snow, they ride in the bed instead of a swan boat. Swan boat is way cooler. I did like that the prince was younger. In some performances it can sometimes be a little creepy that this little girl is with an adult male because there is usually more dancing between the two of them. That said, the dancing was amazing! You can tell that these dancers are of high quality and work extremely hard! Well done!! Thoroughly enjoyed it! Also, the orchestra was amazing too! The music always takes me back to when I was a little girl and my mom used to take me to see The Nutcracker. Thank you.
We enjoyed the performance very much. We took the grandchildren. My grandson said he liked the nutcracker even better than the singing Christmas tree. That's something from a 7 year old boy who didn't want to go because it was a ballet. We had a good time. Thank you to all the performers.
The only disappointment I had was the canned music. The sets were fabulous.