Wednesday, November 30, 2016
How to Reboot a Holiday Classic
Chicago magazine | December 2016: When Ashley Wheater took over as artistic director at the Joffrey Ballet in 2007, he was shocked to discover the state of sets for the company’s long-running production of The Nutcracker. “The scenery was completely falling apart,” he says. “The drops for the snow scene and the second act were threadbare, the paint was falling off, and the wood was kind of rotten.”
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
4 comments:
I think that there are a number of ways to successfully reboot a holiday classic, and keep your traditional audience. The easiest way would be to bring you Christmas Carol up to date. By this I mean maybe using the technology to light the show, building new costumes, updating some of the blocking. A more difficult way would be to simply do a different holiday show (crazy I know). Now that every theater company is doing Christmas Carol, why don’t you be the one theater that is not doing it, and do something like How the Grinch Stole Christmas. In some ways that has a larger potential to be successful because it has such a large history as a holiday story for families. At the end of the day, the best way to reboot your might just be a new fresh marketing plan that will attract new audiences.
I think it is important to reimagine classic stories like this, particularly in forms of art like ballet that tend to attract upper class, white patrons. I love the idea to move the story from being about a privileged white girl to being about a young immigrant. Moreover,I like the idea of reimagining holiday classics in general because it is an integral part of some people’s, and some theatres’, holidays traditions. It’s simply not Christmas until they see that one show, be it the Nutcracker or A Christmas Carol or what have you. When I was younger one of my best friends was a ballerina so I went to see the Nutcracker every year she was in. So I saw this production more than a few times, and it can begin to feel very tired because the same dancers and costumes and sets are used in it again and again year after year. However, with just the right touches these staple holiday shows can be turned into warm magic that capture all the best parts of the holiday season. I understand the critique that we should stop doing these shows because they are tired and antiqued but I think there is also a reason people want to see these shows over and over, and that if we stop showing them we will lose that. However, that doesn’t mean we can find new and interesting ways to present them and address challenging ideas within them.
This will assuredly be a gorgeous production. I am a tremendous fan of Wheeldon's work, and this notion that ballet should adapt, change, and modernize - a concept that is gradually becoming more pervasive throughout the ballet world. This classic story is ripe for alteration, and I glad for the extent to which they are changing the tale for this production. Often, the best known stories are the ones that take updates and changes most gracefully, but are also in the most need of those changes. I appreciate Wheeldon crafting the choreography with the dancers in the room. Developing choreography is one thing, and essentially draping it onto dancers that step into the roles can be a true challenge. I think another strength will be found in its sense of local pride and history. I am excited to see the kind of longevity this performance receives, and how audiences take to it.
I would agree that it is probably time for a revamp for this production. I feel like it is one of those things that no one wants to get rid of but at the same time no one what to take on the project. I think that there are a number of ways that you could do this successfully but it could also be very easy to make the wrong adjustments and have the audience be upset. The nice thing about a holiday classic is that people can watch them once a year and then as soon as it gets back into the season people have no difficulty seeing the same exact production again simply because of the memories that it carries. This concept is the same for all the Christmas movies that only become relevant during one month of the year. I think a revamp is a smart idea for this production and I look forward to seeing the outcome.
Post a Comment