Beginning Nutcracker

I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned it here (my apologies if I’ve mentioned it too often), but we have a few dancers in the family. Of my five children still at home, four of them take classes several times a week, and my youngest, Silas, takes classes a few times a month.

Sophie, Emma, and Maddie have been dancing for a few years now, and last year after watching his sisters performing in The Nutcracker Ballet seven times (yes, we went to all seven shows!), Zach was inspired to try as well. So in January he signed up for his first class, which quickly turned into 3 or 4 classes, which turned into auditioning for and getting parts with his sisters for the spring performances of Giselle and Alice, which turned into private lessons over the summer, which turned into Zach auditioning with his sisters for this year’s Nutcracker, which turned into four of my children getting multiple dance parts for the ballet.

This past Saturday was the first rehearsal and costume fitting, and rehearsals will take place every single Saturday until the shows begin. I was itching to lend a hand and be more involved than writing dance class checks, so I offered to help with the costumes.

Oh! The costumes! There are costumes for various performances put on by the company for the last 40 years or so. I was in a state of bliss just looking through all of them! We measured about 20 girls and fitted many of them into the costumes for one scene, noting alterations, repairs, and modifications that are needed for each outfit for each person. The current costume mistress has quite an organized system in place! I was able to bring home three sets of costumes to make a few basic alterations and repairs, and while I was sewing I couldn’t help but wonder how many different girls wore these dresses on stage. It’s quite a legacy, and whenever I see a picture of one of the party scene dresses on social media there are always a few girls commenting on the dress and the year they wore it on stage. I love the memories that are attached to the costumes, and now I get a chance to participate in some behind the scenes magic. What a gift!