Curriculum-Based Study Guide: The Black Nutcracker Ballet Ballet is a style of European dance that began in France over 300 years ago. The tradition is distinctive in that it has an elaborately codified set of rules about how the dancers should stand and move. Ballet dancers or ballerinas typically begin their training at a young age and continue for many years in order to learn the specialized techniques required to perform in this style. Ballets are dance productions created using a vocabulary of positions and movements of the body. These positions include numerous different foot and arm positions (see ballet terms below). Figure 1. Ballerina s feet. The Nutcracker Ballet: A History In 1816, the German writer E.T.A. Hoffmann published The Nutcracker and the Mouse King, a terrifying story about a battle between a nutcracker and a seven-headed mouse. In 1844, Alexander Dumas adapted (or transformed) the story for children. The Nutcracker is a holiday fairytale that tells the story of a young girl who receives a Nutcracker doll that opens up a magical dream world. The Nutcracker doll turns into a prince who saves the young girl from the Mouse King and ushers her into an enchanted fantasyland. It was this version of Hoffmann s story that caught the attention of Marius Petipa (1818-1910), the French senior ballet master of the Russian Imperial Ballet. Figure 2. French dancer and choreographer Marius Petipa
Petipa hired the acclaimed Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893) to write a musical score for the ballet that would become known as The Nutcracker at its first performance in 1892. Figure 3. Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky The Nutcracker was first performed in the United States in 1944. Since that time, it has become one of the best-loved dance performances of the holiday season. Each year The Nutcracker is performed by hundreds of ballet and theater companies all over the world. Figure 2. Original sketch for the set of The Nutcracker
The Story Of The Black Nutcracker Just as Alexander Dumas adapted E.T.A. Hoffman s original Nutcracker story, so too are there further ways to transform this holiday classic by bringing it into the new cultural and historical contexts. Thus, The Black Nutcracker is a further adaption of the famous ballet set in a modern urban milieu. The synopsis of The Black Nutcracker is as follows: On a snowy Christmas day in Harlem the Wilson family prepares for their annual Christmas party. Their family and friends begin to arrive, dressed in their holiday silks and satins. Uncle D., who loves to perform all kinds of magic, arrives with gifts and tricks. The party begins. There is fun and dancing for both parents and children. Uncle D. entertains everyone with two life-size dolls and then gives Clarice her gift The Nutcracker Doll... The party ends. Clarice and Freddie sneak back into the living room to play with their gifts and fall asleep... Clarice awakens to find that the world is changing mysteriously. She believes it s one of Uncle D s spells. Suddenly, the Mice become life-size and attack the Power Ranger Dolls. The Ninja steps in to help. In desperation, Clarice hits the Queen Rat and she falls unconscious. The Nutcracker doll also comes to life and carries Clarice away on a long journey through the snow to a magic castle in the Land of the Sweets. Charming Angels greet them and guide them to the Sugar Plum Fairy, the Dew Drop and other Dolls in far away lands. In their travels, they were mesmerized by all the dolls native dances. Clarice awakens to find it was all a dream...
The Black Nutcracker is a distinctly African-American adaptation of the Russian ballet classic set in contemporary American context but with global stylistic flourishes. The show includes live West African drumming, African dance steps done en pointe by a stilt walker, the Cha-Cha slide line dance, hip-hop moves, as well as a musical score that combines Tchaikovsky with pieces by African-American jazz composer Duke Ellington. The Black Nutcracker opens up a new space between West African, African-American, and European dance traditions to create something energized, genuinely new, yet familiar too. Ballet Terms Arabesque (are-ah-besk) A position where the dancer stands on one leg with the other leg stretched straight out behind, parallel to the floor. Figure 5. Arabesque ballet position Attitude (ah-tee-tude) A position where the dancer stands on one leg with the other leg curved toward the back. Battement (bat-mahn) A movement in which one leg is extended and then beaten against the other leg, the other foot, or the floor. Chaines (sheh-nay) A series of swift turns done while moving forward in a straight line or circle. Chassé (shah-say) A series of steps where one foot chases the other across the floor.
Figure 6. Chassé ballet step. Développé (day-vlaw-pay) A move in which one leg is raised with the knee bent, then slowly extended into an open position. En Pointe (ahn-pwahnt) Dancing on the tips of the toes. This technique creates the illusion of floating on air. In ballet, only women dance en pointe. Fouetté (fweh-tay) A swift whipping movement of a raised leg, usually done as part of pirouette or spin. Jeté (zhuh-tay) A jump from one foot to the other in which one leg simultaneously kicks out into the air. Pas de Deux (PAH de DUH) A dance for two people, usually a man and a woman. Pas de deux sections of a ballet are used to express intense emotions such as love, joy, or sadness. Pirouette (peer-ou-wet) A whirling or spinning done on one foot. Plié (plee-ay) Lowing the body by bending the knees. Port de Bras (por duh brah) Posture of the arms as they held and moved. Turnout A fundamental ballet standing position where the feet and legs are turned outwards from the hips at a 90-degree angle. Figure 7. Turnout ballet standing position.
Black Nutcracker Terms Adaptation An adaptation is an altered version of something so that it can be newly used for a specific purpose. Cha-Cha Slide A song written by American DJ Casper in 2004 that is often played at dance clubs, parties and sporting events worldwide. The song also has a line dance associated with it that incorporates called instructions to guide dancers through a sequence of movements. Figure 8. Cha-Cha Slide line dance Hip Hop A form of artistic expression that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City. The term refers four aspects of hip-hop culture: DJing, MCing, break dancing, and graffiti writing. Hip-hop is the most significant development in popular music over the past forty years, and can now be found in cultures all over the world. Hip-hop dancing is often referred to as breakdancing and draws on many dance cultures ranging from Afro-Brazilian martial arts (capoeira) to Russian folk dancing and the funky dance moves of James Brown to create an athletic and dynamic style. Figure 9. Breakdancer in the early 1980s.
Duke Ellington (1899-1974) An American jazz composer, pianist and big band leader, Ellington wrote almost 1,000 compositions over a career more than 50 years long. Many of his instrumental compositions for big band became jazz standards that are played by musicians all over the world up to today. Ellington s music helped drive a Harlem-centered cultural movement in the 1920s and 30s called The Harlem Renaissance that brought together artists, writers, and musicians who believed that African-American art could help challenge racism and promote socially progressive politics. Figure 10. Jazz composer Duke Ellington Masquerade and Chakaba In West African performance traditions, masquerade performers disguise themselves as animals, spirit ancestors, or as other people. Chakaba is a traditional practice of wearing a sacred spirit mask while dancing on stilts. Figure 11. Chakaba stilt walker
Djembe a hourglass-shaped hand drum that can produce bass, tone, and slap sounds. Because of its loud volume, the djembe is often the lead drum in West African drum ensembles. Figure 12. Djembe drum Dundun a barrel-shaped bass drum played with a stick. The dundun produces a deep bass tone. A bell is sometimes attached to the drum so the player can combine the sound of the dundun and the bell. The dundun comes in three sizes you will see and hear in todays performance: Figure 13. (from left to right) Dundunba, Sangban, and Kenkeni drums Kenkeni the smallest dundun. The kenkeni has the highest pitch and plays a simple rhythmic pattern. Sangban the medium sized dundun. The sangban has a medium pitch and plays a more complex part that defines the dundun rhythm. Dundunba the largest dundun. The dununba has the deepest pitch of the three drums and plays a sparse rhythmic pattern with widely spaced notes.
Shekere a dried hollow gourd with beads woven into a net covering the gourd. The shekere originated in Nigeria and is used throughout West Africa in drum ensemble music. Questions For Discussion After The Show Figure 14. Shekere shaker What words would you use to describe the dancing in The Black Nutcracker? How did the costumes affect the performance? Did they help the performance? What did you think of the blending of ballet styles with African-American dance and musical styles? If someone asked you about the performance you just saw, what would you tell them about it? What would you say is the most significant aspect of the performance? Which elements of this dance performance were new to you? What was familiar to you? Figure 15. Mural by African-American artist Aaron Douglas (1899-1979).
Class Activity: Tell A Story Through Gestures Dancers tell stories with their bodies without using their voices. Working with your classmates in small groups of 2-3 students, pick one part of The Black Nutcracker to act out in gestures without speaking. Alternately, think up a scenario of your own and try to render it in dance. After rehearsing your group s scene, perform it for the rest of your class. Figure 16. Dancer in New York City telling a story through movement and gesture.
The Black Nutcracker Word Search R H V U Z I F M E R B A A R S A T S N P U V N K J F M U I A E T H E D C J H O I T O T B I A Q C L B T K N C H I L E T R U G H G M S E L X I N I C A A N S K G O B A T T E M E N T U A S I A U H I E N U D Y C B T T M U D H U K A Z R B C R I E C E A P Y T D N C E O V B D G C R E L T G R V P V E U E P V H Z A I J E T E L T A A E E N D R R S L R K K J T U E U E E E U J H L X J K N O I T A T P A D A N M P B C L P O Y Q J O Y É H F O U E T T E L H M P O H P I H V U J C B Y P D W P S Y F P E D S Y P N E M T N J W R E Y C S F I J S J A A K E L Q Y M E S S A H C S H V N U R D X X H S S Y Y M J M E K U Q Terms Ballet Cha-Cha Arabesque Adaptation chakaba Attitude Nutcracker Battement Chaines Tchaikovsky Chasse Developpe Ellington Fouette Jete Hip-hop Pirouette Plié Turnout Djembe shekere Dundun
Answer Key R H V U Z I F M E R B A A R S A T S N P U V N K J F M U I A E T H E D C J H O I T O T B I A Q C L B T K N C H I L E T R U G H G M S E L X I N I C A A N S K G O B A T T E M E N T U A S I A U H I E N U D Y C B T T M U D H U K A Z R B C R I E C E A P Y T D N C E O V B D G C R E L T G R V P V E U E P V H Z A I J E T E L T A A E E N D R R S L R K K J T U E U E E E U J H L X J K N O I T A T P A D A N M P B C L P O Y Q J O Y É H F O U E T T E L H M P O H P I H V U J C B Y P D W P S Y F P E D S Y P N E M T N J W R E Y C S F I J S J A A K E L Q Y M E S S A H C S H V N U R D X X H S S Y Y M J M E K U Q Further Resources Books Hoffman, E.T.A and Alexandre Dumas. 2010. The Nutcracker and Mouse King and The Tale of the Nutcracker. Translated by Joachim Neugroschel. New York: Penguin Books. Video Kirov ballet, St. Petersburg, Russia, performing The Nutcracker. Accessed at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khywvfn3wy4.