5 Star Stories: ‘The Nutcracker’ by Ballet Memphis returns as gift to Bluff City

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - The dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy returned to the Orpheum Theatre this holiday season – with Ballet Memphis’ “The Nutcracker,” a holiday tradition for Mid-Southerners for nearly 40 years now. 

This year, the production comes with new costumes, new sets, new choreography and a new set of performance dates so even more families can experience the magic!

We’re going behind the scenes in this week’s 5 Star Story. For the past three-plus decades, Ballet Memphis has produced “The Nutcracker” every holiday season, taking audiences along on the adventures of young Clara and her beloved nutcracker.

”And then, the magic kind of goes from there... Is it a dream? Is it not?” queried Steven McMahon. “The Nutcracker” choreographer and Ballet Memphis artistic director also explained that this year’s performance will take on a bit of an evolution from years past. 

“So, yeah, we’ve been doing this production for about over 35 years, and anything that has a long, long-running history, needs to be updated. And so, we’re getting to do that this year which is really, really exciting... brand new sets, brand new costumes... new choreography... but the same story that everybody knows and loves... just something that’s for Memphis,” McMahon said.        

Husband and wife duo and Ballet Memphis School and Youth Ballet co-directors, Virginia Pilgrim Ramey and Brandon Ramey, for the first time in dozens of years, are working behind the scenes with the student dancers instead of performing in the holiday classic. 

According to Virginia, “We just retired from performing professionally... so this is our first year to get to work with the kids and watch their process from start to finish, and it’s been really rewarding.” 

With her husband adding, “It’s a privilege to be able to pass on what we know and what we’ve learned to love to the next generation of young dancers in Memphis.” 

The production also calls for six weeks of intensive work for the Rameys and the 63 student performers who will get the opportunity of a lifetime to dance beside and learn from the dance company’s professional dancers. 

“So, they’re really seeing what it’s like to be in the real deal. Watching company members practice and perform... they’re backstage getting to see the best of the best do what they do and they’re learning from them every minute,” described Virginia.

It’s also a labor of love. 

“This is our gift to the City of Memphis... and so we just want it to be the best gift that we can give,” expressed McMahon. 

Adding even more pressure to this year’s production is the creation of new costumes. 

“They were designed by Christine Dortch... who is a costume designer from New York that Ballet Memphis has worked with many times before. But, this is obviously a large-scale production so there are hundreds of costumes to make,” he revealed. 

There are also new sets that now include a nostalgic riverside location, for one. 

“We wanted to give a little bit of a... like a little nod to Memphis without it being super specific,” McMahon further revealed. 

Adding that all of it is “a confectionary dreamland” as seen through Clara’s eyes, “But, what I wanted to show was the mind of a child... what would a child dream up? Especially in Act II, what would that set look like, the costumes look like through the eyes of a child?”       

Along with the music we all know and love, the storyline remains the same, and McMahon hopes the audience feels all the love the performers and behind-the-scenes crew have poured into this Nutcracker production.

“I hope that while they’re watching it, they feel joy! I hope that when they leave they feel that same joy, because, looking outside right now can be quite tough. The world’s not an easy place to live in, sometimes, and these opportunities are to show the best that we can be, right? The best of our creativity and how we work together. These are all the things that are tied up in ‘The Nutcracker.’ These are the things that make it special,” illustrated McMahon.             

You have seven opportunities to see “The Nutcracker” by Ballet Memphis over two weekends, December 9 and 10, and the 15th through the 17th. 

Tickets are available through Ticketmaster or the Orpheum box office. 

For more information about Ballet Memphis or its production of The Nutcracker, click on this link.

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