West Hawaii Dance Theatre and Academy lights up the holidays by presenting “The Nutcracker” ballet.
The delightful, traditional holiday classic will be performed at Kahilu Theatre at noon and 3 p.m. Dec. 23. This visually-stunning, festive, and family friendly production includes more than 30 local dancers, returning West Hawaii Dance Theatre alumni, and guest professional dancers.
Re-imagined by West Hawaii Dance Theatre’s Founder and Artistic Director Virginia Holte, and choreographed by special guest Timour Bourtasenkov, the narrated production creates a magical experience that is sure to uplift your spirit.
Guest professional dancers from American Ballet Theatre include: Katherine Williams, Jose Sebastian, Andri Ischuk and Bourasenkov, who will appear as Herr Drosselmeyer.
“The Nutcracker” ballet combines the music of Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky with the charming, old world fairy tale based on the original E.T.A. Hoffman story “The Nutcracker and the King of Mice.”
The Nutcracker tells the story of Clara, who is given a magical Nutcracker Doll on Christmas Eve by her eccentric Uncle Drosselmeyer. Adventure awaits as she and her transformed Nutcracker Prince battle the frightful Rat King before embarking on a journey through the Land of the Snow. With the the help of the delicate Sugar Plum Fairy, Clara and her Prince travel to the Land of the Sweets where they are entertained by an Arabian princess, spicy Spanish dancers, giggling Chinese dancers, delightful marzipan, and beautiful waltzing flowers.
Limited in-person seating is available for both performances. The 3 p.m. performance may also be viewed by livestream and on-demand via KahiluTV. Tickets can be purchased at https://kahilutheatre.org.
For more information on the nonprofit West Hawaii Dance Theatre, call (808) 329-8876, email info@whdt.org or visit whdt.org.