WARNING: This is a post I finished and then realized that it kind of sucked. Not sure what my point was when I typed it. I guess it was too late to be attempting something creative. However, since is the only proof that I have, in fact, been on my blog at all in the last month, I decided to publish it anyway. Read at your own risk!
With the holiday season now officially over, it’s time to look back at Christmas 2008. Ah, yes. The endless shopping with hopes of beating that Christmas deadline. The dragging of cheery decorations out of boxes and into the living room with that thought in the back of your head that it will all have to be put away and dragged back into storage eventually. That day or two of rest hanging out with family and friends. The struggle to stay up until midnight to ring in the new year.
The pilgrimage to see the Nutcracker.
As an orchestral musician, I’ve been under the Nutcracker on a few occasions, but I had never seen it from the audience. This year, I played in the orchestra for two productions, and finally got to see it for myself for the first time from the audience point of view. Each production was put on by a unique group as far as skill, size, and quality – from the orchestra’s, the dancer’s and the stage’s point of view. The first production was one in Grand Junction, staged by a private dance studio, accompanied by an orchestra that consisted of musicians contracted from CU in Boulder, and DU in Denver, along with a few local musicians. The second was staged by a high school dance studio in Longmont, with the music supplied by the Niwot Timberline Symphony – a volunteer community orchestra.
Grand Junction had some impressive dancers in it who had obviously put in a lot of work. The two principal dancers were especially good. The orchestra was also quite a pleasant surprise. For being a mish-mash group thrown together for four rehearsals, and then the performances, it was really impressive to see how quickly we came together, and how tight the sections were. This was the first time this particular group produced the Nutcracker. Not bad for a first time! Since they sold out all their performances, I’m sure they’ll be back next year. I’ve already let them know they can give me a call if they need a bassoonist. Of course, the audience loved seeing it.
Then there was Niwot. What can you say about a community orchestra staffed by volunteer musicians? It always seems to be a mixed bag, and Niwot was no different. The brass was not bad, at all, and most of the wind players were quite competent. The strings, besides an occasional hair-curling skull-thumping pitch problem, did quite well for a community group. The high school dancers were rehearsing and correcting issues right up until the stage was lit for the first performance. One dancer dislocated her knee during a number. In other words, there were a few rough edges with this production, but, just like Grand Junction, the dancers and the musicians really seemed to enjoy themselves. And, of course, the packed audience loved seeing it.
Finally, there was the show that I actually got to watch: the full-on big-guns pull-out-all-the-stops professional production in downtown Denver with the most lavish sets and special effects, the most amazingly choreographed and graceful dancers (including the men, a gender that seemed mostly absent from the other two productions), and the tightest sounding orchestra. This was all housed in the ritziest of venues – complete with a wine bar during intermission – packed with people dressed to the hilt. Rough edges were just not a part of this performance. This was professionals doing their job, and it showed. I’m glad I got a chance to see it from the audience. It goes without saying that, of course, the swanky audience loved seeing it.
Despite the vast differences between the three productions, the common theme among them all was this: Lots and lots of people wanted to come be entertained, and everyone enjoyed themselves. As a musician, I can tend to get pretty cynical about pieces like the Nutcracker. Sometimes I resent it as being one of the only pieces they’ll see all year, ignoring all the other concerts, ballets and plays with all of the high-art, serious content. However, seeing the sheer number of people who came was a not so subtle reminder to me that our most basic professional definition is that of entertainers. Sure, we’ve worked hard for years, trying to perfect our art. Some have achieved amazing success – critically and financially - in their years of practice. Some are perfectly satisfied giving their time in a community effort. None of this would matter, though, if someone didn’t enjoy what they heard or saw, or wasn’t inspired by it. None of it would matter if they weren’t entertained.
With this in mind, I hope people continue coming to the Nutcracker and truly enjoying themselves. I’ll try to direct my own cynicism elsewhere from now on – like maybe toward weather forecasting.
