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The Slutcracker at Somerville Theatre
Ballet-parody masterpiece The Slutcracker has been delivering raunchy, ribald revelry and erotic good vibrations to Somerville Theatre audiences since 2008. Based on Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's famed 1890s ballet The Nutcracker, it combines high culture with burlesque tradition and gathers together local ballet dancers, strippers, belly dancers, pole performers, hula-hoopers, acrobats, plus other eccentric and exotic dancers.
In The Slutcracker, sequins and glitter meet fleshy natural beauty with an emphasis on diversity, individuality and an adults-only approach to sexual freedom. "Classic" female-gendered performers share the stage with male and trans performers. Risqué costumes and blush-inducing props assure that this is not a Nutcracker for kids — so 18 and over only, please.
About The Slutcracker
The Slutcracker was created by choreographer-director Vanessa White, a former Nutcracker dancer who still performs as the Sugar Dish Fairy in this saucy adaptation featuring her Lipstick Criminals troupe. "Like all art, people will take away what it means to them," she once explained to The Tufts Daily. "All I ever wanted to do was make a beautiful show — and funny, and sexy." Her work is set to Tchaikovsky's score as recorded by the Czech Republic's Brno Philharmonic Orchestra.
White's major modification of the E. T. A. Hoffmann short story that inspired the original was to transform the ballet's youthful sibling protagonists, Clara and Fritz, into a dissatisfied engaged couple.
Clara and Fritz explore a garden of previously forbidden sexual delights in the work's dreamlike second act, when The Slutcracker cuts loose with a wide variety of titillating capers featuring Russian dominatrixes, the erotic Dance of the Reed Pole, and a troupe of sexually indeterminate clowns. Other set pieces include "Waltz of the Flowers and Wet-Spot Fairy," a Busby Berkeley take-off, and a Bacchanalia involving both the onstage performers and a team of "Fluffers" working among the audience. Suffice to say that The Slutcracker contains everything audiences love about the original holiday perennial – and a whole lot more.
It's funny, body positive, LGBTQ positive, what more could you want? There is a reason the show sold out, the performers are awsome, and it's a great mix of contemporary dance, ballet, and the art of the strip. Highly recomend it.
Very creative. An enjoyable experience with a super fun cast. Love the diversity and the performance was outstanding!
This is a fun, tongue in cheek version of the nutcracker. If gender inclusive sexuality intimidates you, this is not your jam. This comedy promotes female empowerment, has actresses of all shapes and sizes, there’s even a giant dildo that shares time on stage. It’s made up of local actors and is a generally great laugh. Enjoy! 😉
Far from being funny. Had no idea the concept of the show
This production was recommended to us. We knew that there would be some level of risqué but this was nothing interesting, meaningful, or entertaining. If they had kept the Nutcracker theme throughout, and stuck w the characters, at least it would have been funny. It was super repetitive, and only focused on women for the most part.
A party from the beginning! This is my second time seeing this show, and it never fails to disappoint! The music is beautiful, there were some very talented dancers, the acting was fun, and the body and gender inclusivity was so refreshing to see! Such a fun time!
The best version of the nutcracker I’ve ever experienced, don’t think I’ll see a better one either
Recommend it 100%! Definitely coming back next year to see it!
Act II is a fabulous tour of various dance forms and cabaret costumes. Pole dancing, pasties, and whips abound along with some stunning and slutty ballet and well-integrated humor. Unfortunately, you have to sit through Act I to get there. Act I presents an overlong and overwrought rats nest of mimed relationships with sloppily executed jokes squeezed in. It’s confusing and feels never-ending.
Such a fun, carefree, not serious, inclusive holiday entertainment show! The dancers are so talented, and the creator is incredible. Highly recommend!
