It is the last Style File Friday of Blogmas 2022, and it has been an appropriate festive and stylish month. We started with the best vintage coats, then moved to red and green fashion history, and of course, the best red and green tiaras. We are shifting gears a bit for this week though, to a beloved holiday tradition. Many of us have memories of going to see The Nutcracker; I still go every year. So I thought it was time that we take a look at the gorgeous costumes in the production. This Style File Friday is all about The Nutcracker ballet costumes!
I am incredibly fortunate to have the Royal Winnipeg Ballet as my home ballet company. They are the oldest continuously running ballet company in North America; they were the first royal charter granted by Queen Elizabeth II. Their Nutcracker production is uniquely Canadian and features stunning costumes.
The Nutcracker Ballet Synopsis
In case you have missed my many posts on The Nutcracker, I will give you a lightning-fast synopsis. Clara is given a nutcracker doll by her godfather, Drosselmeyer; her younger brother breaks it, but Drosselmeyer fixes it, and she falls asleep holding it.
Somehow the nutcracker turns into a prince who protects Clara as the Mouse King and his rodent minions fight against the prince and his soldiers. The Sugar Plum Fairy then leads them to the Kingdom of Sweets where they are treated to several performances. When Clara wakes up in the morning, everything is back to normal again.
Clara’s Costume
Clara is often performed by a younger dancer, at least in the first act- you can see her on the right in the photo above. She tends to be wearing a simple knee-length dress, as she is meant to be a child. It is definitely one of the simplest costumes in any given production, but once you’ve seen it, you will instantly think of Clara when you see it.
The Nutcracker Prince, also known as The Cavalier, and his Costume
You can see the Nutcracker Prince on the right above here- he is with Clara and his soldiers in the battle. As I mentioned, these are particularly Canadian costumes as his soldiers are Canadian Mounties. The Nutcracker Prince does not always have a nutcracker’s face in the first act, but he almost always will have a military-inspired costume. After all, he is leading his army against the mouse king.
In the second act, the Nutcracker Prince oftentimes acts as the Sugar Plum Fairy’s Cavalier. (In most productions, dancers will fill two, three, sometimes even four or five roles.) Oftentimes he will wear the same costume, but it is not a given. If the Cavalier does have a different costume, it usually tends to have far less of a military slant.
The Sugar Plum Fairy’s Costume
The Sugar Plum Fairy costume is the costume of The Nutcracker. In almost every single production in existence, she will have an ornately decorated platter tutu and bodysuit, complete with tiara. While many companies need to make difficult choices when it comes to budgets for costumes, it is rare that they will skimp on the Sugar Plum Fairy. Her solo is one of the centrepieces of the entire ballet, and she is Clara’s host in the kingdom.
There are several different styles of tutus. Commonly, you will see the Romantic style in the Waltz of the Flowers. However, the Sugar Plum Fairly and the snowflakes (see below) tend to always be platters. This flat style of tutu is dramatic but fairly difficult to dance in. A dancer’s alignment must be perfect, or the tutu will quickly betray that you aren’t pulled up or your hips aren’t straight. In my opinion, this only makes these roles more impressive.
Are you impressed by The Nutcracker ballet costumes?
Cheers,
The Historian
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