Nutcracker Souvenir Program 2021

The Carlos Family in Honor of Thalia N. Carlos Presents

FOUNDER DOROTHY MOSES ALEXANDER, 1929 – 1960

ARTISTIC DIRECTOR EMERITUS ROBERT BARNETT, 1961 – 1994

ARTISTIC DIRECTOR JOHN MCFALL, 1994 – 2016

ATLANTA BALLET BOARD

CHAIR NANCY FIELD, J.D.

VICE CHAIR BARBARA S. JOINER

VICE CHAIR KRISTEN MANION TAYLOR

TREASURER JUAN CARLOS URDANETA SECRETARY JAN BEAVES

IMMEDIATE PAST CHAIR ELIZABETH ADAMS

Dear WelcomeFriends,toAtlanta

Ballet’s The Nutcracker! First, let us say thank you to our returning patrons for choosing to continue your holiday tradition with Atlanta Ballet in our new venue, Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre. If you’re joining us for the first time, we’re excited to have you, and you’re in for an unforgettable experience! This larger-than-life production of The Nutcracker presents spectacularly at this state-of-the-art venue.

It’s fitting that our return to the theatre stage is with The Nutcracker, as the holidays are a joyous time of year. Preparing to bring The Nutcracker back to the stage has been an emotional and exciting time for everyone at Atlanta Ballet, and it is our wish it will bring you the same joy and inspiration that it has brought us. We are honored to introduce The Nutcracker, created by internationally acclaimed choreographer Yuri Possokhov for Atlanta Ballet, to a new generation. We hope this Nutcracker will continue to be a cherished holiday tradition for years to come.

On behalf of the Atlanta Ballet company, staff, orchestra and Centre for Dance Education, we thank you for your continued support. We would not be here without you, our extended Atlanta Ballet family. We’re opening our 2021 | 2022 Season stronger than ever, excited for what lies ahead!

Best wishes for a safe and healthy new year to you and yours.

With Gennadigratitude,Nedvigin

Tom West Artistic Director Executive Director

The Thalia N. Carlos & Chris M. Carlos Foundation

“ We are proud to honor my mother’s passion for ballet and commitment to the arts by contributing to the creation of Atlanta Ballet’s new Nutcracker

The Nutcracker is one of our city’s most beloved holiday traditions, and we hope to see fellow Atlantans take on the challenge to support this magical new production.”

AtlantaBallet and The Nutcracker have been a part of my family for a very long time. Not only have my two daughters witnessed Atlanta Ballet’s Nutcracker many times from the audience, but they have also performed in the ballet through the Atlanta Ballet Centre for Dance Education (CDE).

They have spent many hours in rehearsals, and on stage in this magical production, which has become a tradition for our family. It has been so gratifying to watch my girls grow through their participation in this production.

I truly believe their poise and self-confidence have been positively impacted through their years of dance training. I also believe my family’s personal experience with the CDE translates to the positive influence dance has on young people, and the lasting impact it can have on these students’ future lives.

I have not always been an “arts guy,” but my mother Thalia was a passionate supporter of the arts, and she instilled her love for the arts in my girls and me. I understand how important and valuable the arts have been for my children and for the community. My family has been very blessed, and we have always strived to give back to our community by

donating to the arts and other causes we believe help make Atlanta the great city that it is today. I continue to work hard to carry on the family legacy, so I am able to give my own children and all of Atlanta’s children the gift of experiencing the arts and witnessing the beauty of dance.

I support the arts because it represents an expression of the joy of life, of living, and of happiness, all of which are essential for a fulfilled life.

When Atlanta Ballet presented the opportunity to support a brand-new Nutcracker, I jumped at the chance.

I knew Atlanta Ballet and the creative team assembled by Artistic Director Gennadi Nedvigin would create a spectacular production. I also wanted to honor my beloved mother and her dedication to enhancing and sustaining Atlanta Ballet as well as the arts in Atlanta with a lasting legacy.

I chose to make this gift as a challenge to the community to encourage others to support this production, too. Collectively our support will allow more than 1.2 million Atlantans to enjoy this incredible new version of The Nutcracker over the next 20 years.

– Chris Carlos, President, The Thalia N. Carlos & Chris M. Carlos Foundation

Photo courtesy of Michael C. Carlos Museum of Emory University.

PRESENTING SPONSOR

LEAD SPONSOR

Atlanta Ballet gratefully acknowledges the extraordinary commitment of all our donors who provided generous support for the creation of The Nutcracker , as well as the tour to the Kennedy Center.

The Carlos Family in Honor of Thalia Carlos

The Story of The Nutcracker

Thisstaging of The Nutcracker ballet takes place in a charming German city on Christmas Eve and pulls in elements from E.T.A. Hoffmann’s 1816 story “The Nutcracker and the Mouse King,” set to the iconic Tchaikovsky score. This two-act ballet, a classic holiday story, uses elaborately crafted scenery combined with advanced techniques in lighting and video projection to enhance the story’s magic.

Act I

It is Christmas Eve, and family and friends gather for holiday festivities at the Stahlbaum house. Guests arrive by sleds and skis and frolic outside. Young Marie Stahlbaum, a shy bookworm, welcomes the arrival of the guests, including her mysterious godfather Drosselmeier, a clock worker who, with his magical abilities, makes Christmas presents for his nieces and nephews every year. This year, he brings a peculiar gift to Marie – a nutcracker doll.

It is nearly midnight, the party has ended, and the guests have said their goodbyes. Marie returns to the cabinet to check on her new Nutcracker doll and suddenly finds herself surrounded by a horde of menacing mice. Magically, her beloved Nutcracker jumps to the rescue as she watches her dolls come to life and everything around her grows in size.

After an exhausting, but yet unfinished battle, Drosselmeier reveals to Marie that the Nutcracker is a prince. Charmed with each other, they dance through a wonderland of snow before embarking on a magical journey.

Act 2

Drosselmeier enters in grand fashion and introduces a world of books, thousands flying in the air when he selects one particularly interesting book. It happens to be the very same book Marie used to fight off the mice and where the Mouse King hid after the battle. The Nutcracker Prince and Marie float back in together and dance among the flowers. Drosselmeier recalls the book, which has grown tremendously, and the Mouse King and his army appear. Drosselmeier arms the Nutcracker Prince for a battle, and the Nutcracker Prince defeats the Mouse King with his sword.

Drosselmeier invites Marie and the Nutcracker Prince back into his mysterious world, taking them on a journey through the pages of a storybook to fantastical places where they meet characters from different countries around the world. Remarkably, they witness bullfights, snake charmers, and the most amazing flower garden dancing in the wind.

On their way back after spending enchanted time together, the Nutcracker Prince wants Marie to stay with him. Drosselmeier separates them, holding onto Marie as the Nutcracker Prince

Mariedeparts.finds

herself dreaming and wakes up. She realizes that everything must come to an end and she is delighted by memories of a wonderful world filled with beautiful music, travel and adventure, evoking the timeless and magical spirit of the holidays that she will fondly remember for years to come.

Remi Nakano.

Meet Creativethe Team

“We are proud to bring such a gifted group of innovative masterminds together to create a magical reimagining of this classic holiday tale,” said Gennadi Nedvigin, Atlanta Ballet’s artistic director. “The combination of their specialties exquisitely enhances the ballet and allows audiences to escape from reality and join us in this enchanting, new world that is The Nutcracker.”

Choreography by Yuri Possokhov

Possokhov, San Francisco Ballet’s choreographer-in-residence, has won the Isadora Duncan Award for outstanding choreography and the Benois de la Danse Award. He wowed audiences at San Francisco Ballet, Joffrey Ballet and Bolshoi theatre with his masterworks.

Set Design by Tom Pye

Pye has designed theater, opera, television and film sets for productions around the world. He received a Tony Award nomination for his work on Fiddler on the Roof.

Costume Design by Sandra Woodall

Woodall has designed costumes for dance companies since 1970. She is a winner of the Isadora Duncan Award for costume design.

Lighting Design by David Finn

Finn has lit dance performances, operas, film sets and Cirque du Soleil stages. He won a Knight of Illumination Award in the UK.

Video Designs by Finn Ross

Finn Ross’ video designs can currently be seen on Broadway in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. He has won two Olivier awards, a Tony Award and a Drama Desk Award.

David Finn, Gennadi Nedvigin, Tom Pye, Amanda Craig and Yuri Possokhov.

Tom Pye, Yuri Possokhov, Sandra Woodall and Gennadi Nedvigin.

PossokhovYuri

The Choreographer

International ballet choreographer Yuri Possokhov danced for 10 years with the Bolshoi Ballet, performing leading roles in the company’s classical and contemporary repertoire. While performing, Possokhov studied choreography and ballet pedagogy at the State College of Theatrical Arts.

He was a principal dancer with the Royal Danish Ballet for two years before joining the San Francisco Ballet (SFB) as a principal dancer in 1994. During his 12 years dancing with SFB, he began choreographing. Upon retirement from dancing, he joined the artistic staff at SFB as choreographerHein-residence.haschoreographed

14 ballets for SFB and continues to create new works for the company. Possokhov choreographs ballets for companies

worldwide. In 2015, his full-length for the Bolshoi Ballet, A Hero of Our Time, was met with critical acclaim, and the company invited him to stage a fulllength ballet based on the life of Rudolf Nureyev that premiered in December 2017. For these two ballets, Possokhov received the prestigious Benois de la Danse Award, established by the International Dance Union.

His Anna Karenina, premiered in 2019 as a co-production between Chicago's Joffrey Ballet and The Australian Ballet. His most recent full-length ballet, The Seagull, premiered with the Bolshoi Ballet in the summer of 2021. Possokhov is a frequent guest with Atlanta Ballet.

Learn more at yuripossokhov.com.

TheMakingScenery

The Inspiration

“I spent a lot of time examining the collages of America artist Joseph Cornell. They have an exciting mix of elements I wanted to convey - a playful, modern, and slightly surreal feeling, and a contemporary use of period imagery. This was key for me in finding the aesthetic for the show and contributed to my decision to make it look like a huge three-dimensional scrapbook or

–storybook.”TomPye, Set Designer

The Collaboration

“One of the key things is establishing the nature of the finish surfaces for each piece…color, texture, etc. If you have already a working shorthand and a mutual trust with the set designer, then that process is easier. The lovely thing with set designer Tom Pye is that he trusts the CTS creative team to really push the boundaries to such an extent that some of those scenic pieces become standalone pieces of art.”

– Ed Wilson, Cardiff Theatrical Services

Cardiff Theatrical Services (CTS) in Cardiff, Wales, built the scenery for The Nutcracker. CTS has built sets for Welsh National Opera, London 2012 Olympics, BBC Worldwide and many other clients.

A Costume Approach

It takes a village to dress The Nutcracker cast.

These are just a few of the behind-thescenes specialists who helped costume designer Sandra Woodall transform her sketches from paper to production.

Selecting and purchasing materials

Costume supervisor Cathy Hill helped Sandra choose fabrics and liaise with all the dyers, makers, milliners and tailors, in order to bring everything together on time and on budget.

Wanted to achieve

Nicola Killeen is a real artist with color. She runs an amazing workshop in London where she dyes, paints and digitally prints fabrics. Sandra has enjoyed collaborating with her and discussing the painterly effect she wanted to achieve in this production of The Nutcracker.

Mask-making

Few people haven’t already seen the work of mask and prop maker Robert Allsopp. His work has appeared in Batman, Harry Potter and even the recent James Bond movies. Robert made the mice and many other masks that you will see on stage.

The Inspiration

“Costume designer Sandra Woodall’s designs are based in the early 1800s, known as the Regency period. They are lush, rich and hope to evoke a magical feeling. The aim is that the dancers will appear as if in a painting while they perform on stage.”

The Look & Feel

“From the moment we first laid eyes upon Sandra’s designs, the race was on to turn the two-dimensional drawings into three-dimensional costumes. Fabrics are chosen not just for the way they look but also for the way that they will envelop a dancer’s body and flow with their movements.

“After form, function and durability are key factors when making costumes for ballet. Next, prototypes are created and presented to the artistic director for approval. Overall, many thousands of hours of work will be done, including multiple fittings and dress rehearsals, before all is revealed when the curtain rises on opening night.”

- Jane Gill, Parkinson GillLtd.

Parkinson Gill Ltd. has created costumes for The Royal Opera House in London and many other major European opera and ballet companies, as well as The Metropolitan Opera in New York and Joffrey Ballet Chicago. Pictured here are Sandra Woodall (standing) and Jane Gill of Parkinson Gill Ltd. fitting dancers in Atlanta.

Light, Camera, Action!

The Collaboration

“I have worked with Nutcracker choreographer Yuri Possokhov on and off for the past 10 years. He has a joyful, fresh, inspirational and heartfelt take on all the work he produces. His spirit and process bring you right back to the core of what is important in the theater. He has the inherent ability to connect to the heart and soul of his audience. He deeply understands human emotion and how the theater can make us reflect on what is important in our own lives.

“Also, I love the Atlanta Ballet. I have been here to design The Four Seasons, The Exiled, Classical Symphony, Camino Real, The Firebird, and have had my 7 for Eight reproduced here. The Company is incredibly supportive and a load of fun to work with.”

-David Finn, Lighting Designer

David Finn’s previous work with Atlanta Ballet includes The Four Seasons, The Exiled, and Camino Real, for which he also completed his first professional scenic design.

Creating Magic

The Inspiration

“The work of [visual artist] Joseph Cornell has been a huge inspiration, especially for the overture. We’ve tried to make the overture into a living version of one of his vitrines. We have also been looking at a lot of fairly Germanic 18th century etchings and concepts of technology of the time to realize Drosselmeier’s workshop.”

The Look and Feel

“There is a broad reach in the design. The story of The Nutcracker is wild and varied, so we’ve cast the net fairly wide, going for a fantasy story book, living collage feel full of a lot of detail and nuance.”

Award-winning video designer Finn Ross is part of the creative team that designed Disney's FROZEN The Broadway Musical.

- Finn Ross, Video Designer

Emily Carrico.

Remi Nakano.

Atlanta Ballet dancers.

Atlanta Ballet's new Nutcracker to come.

Airi Igarashi.

Fuki Takahashi.

Atlanta Ballet dancers.

This [Nutcracker]…tops them all as the most entertaining as well as the smartest. Washington Post

The whimsy is enchanced by the graceful Empire silhouettes of Sandra Woodall's costumes, the clever tricks of dimension in Tom Pye's set designs and the warmth of David Finn's lighting. Washington Post

Who Are the Kids in The Nutcracker?

Give the Gift of Dance

Register your dancer. You can sign up now for the spring term, which begins January 10, 2022, at all three Centre locations.

Michael C. Carlos Dance Centre 1695 Marietta Blvd. NW Atlanta, GA 404.873.581130318x1225

Centre Administrative Director: Kelly Tonina Cooper kcooper@atlantaballet.com

Virginia-Highland Centre 504 Amsterdam Ave. NE Atlanta, GA 404.883.217830306

Principal: Nicole Adams nadams@atlantaballet.com

All of the children performing in this world-premiere production of The Nutcracker are students at the Atlanta Ballet Centre for Dance Education.

We held auditions in August at the Michael C. Carlos Dance Centre in West Midtown, and out of 290 hopefuls, we selected 168 talented students to perform roles ranging from Party Children and Toy Soldiers to Young Mice, Chicks and Stars.

Sixteen gymnasts, ages 9 to 16, from local metro Atlanta gyms were cast to perform the roles of Star Acrobats.

We are confident that some of the students you see in The Nutcracker today will pirouette into professional dance careers and delight audiences for years to come.

Atlanta Ballet is dedicated to providing opportunities for the students who attend our Centre for Dance Education to experience the art of performance at a professional level and learn directly from the Company dancers with whom they share the stage.

In fact, enrollment at the school is one of the criteria to be invited to audition for a role in The Nutcracker cast.

We offer a variety of dance classes for children ages 2 through adult –including creative movement, ballet, tap, jazz, hip-hop, modern and musical theatre – at three convenient locations in West Midtown, Buckhead and Virginia-Highland.

Buckhead Centre 4279 Roswell Road, # 703 Atlanta, GA 404.303.150130342

Principal: Kate Gaul kgaul@atlantaballet.comVisitcentre.atlantaballet.com to learn more!

Jackie Nash and Jacob Bush.

By years ago in , a family gathered on Christmas Eve around a . A young girl named received a toy from her godfather, Drosselmeier. It was and , and she loved it. But her brother broke it. Thankfully, Drosselmeier brought the toy back to life, so it could battle against the King. The girl was able to defeat the enemy, and she and the toy traveled to the Land, where she danced with the and the . It sure was – a very merry to remember!

Party Children Harper Tillman, Leela Basole, Steven Tonnis, Riley Sipe, Reese Gyovai, Angelese Savoldi, Emma Ricci, Jaya Canty, Anna Stewart, Ella Tillman, Kahlen Wright

Lucy Johnson, Autumn Blalock, Sophie Antell, Evie Ferencik, Daniel Gray, Laylah Flit, Holly Johnson, Chloe Montooth, Morrison Braley, Josie Joyner Not Pictured | Anna Jane Harben

Catherine Decker, Anne Weiss, London Moreland, Kiera Klein, Sophia Wang, Nevaeh Walton, Alexandria Arthur, Sophia Pham, Molly Diamant, Mia Crawford Not Pictured | Daniel Gray, Steven Tonnis

Charlotte Laubmann, Jeremiah Holder, Kali Underwood, Cici Jia, Leilani Burks, Julia McArthur, Lilo Cassimatis, Ava Redick, Emily Hudson, Shalamar Armelin Not Pictured | Sydney Sommers

Toy Soldiers

Elliott Rowland, Caroline Schiller, Anne Schiller, Ellie Meacham, Ella de Roode, Emma Siegelman

Ansley Fitfal, Madeline Hardy, Radha Retnasaba, Nora Partin, Lila Leslie, Sofi Khusnutdinova

Julia Lanier Groves, Ariana Goel, Megan Bridges, Geneva Kuo, Kate King, Isabella Young

Kate McKeveny, Gretchen Walter, Jane Wightwick, Lilly Belle Palmer, Allison Dixon, Isabel Moore

Emma Bastin, Madison Doyle, Charlotte Kang, Maddie Hasner, Hailey Hasner, Anna Lovett McClure

Young Mice

Eloise Fleck, Hannah Anderson, Elizabeth Schaler, Sophia Flickinger, Carolina Williams, Evelyn Redden

Emily Osman, Mackenzie Adams, Kasey Liu, Harper Preston, Rosemarie Trammell, Ashlyn Williams

Avery Lin, Logan Douthit, Palmer Martin Mary Carlyle Mills, Margaret Bailey Blackwood, Mila Nedvigin

Safra Simpson, Eva Christina Mercier, Bella Gaffney Lydia Lina, Sadie Hughes, Alexandra Waller

Eleni Starks, Lotus Nichols, Elliot Logan, Jane Weeks, Ayla Icgoren Not pictured | Avni Doshi

Chicks

Evelyn Wood, Beau Sipe, Elizabeth Mackay Huber, Jane Pariseau, Ania Gamino, Eviana Price

Clemmer Houser, Charlotte Gilfedder, Priya Diffley, Harbans Shailendra, Kinley Bayless, Lizzy Stevenson

Avery Reid, Lily Mack Brady, River Henderson, Owen Stewart, Eri Seet, Katelyn Miller

Helen Griffin, Olivia Ramsey, Pfeiffer Yaeger, Frances Jay, Elizabeth Blackwood, Collins Anderson

Sarah Crenshaw Grace, Emma Schaefer, Elisabeth Weissglass, Elizabeth Hammond, Ember Martzall, Augusta Campbell

Stars

Sara Elisabeth Bethea, Harper Tillman, Emma Ricci, Angelese Savoldi, Kahlen Wright, Shalamar Armelin, Estefania Ontanilla

Ashley McKoy, Lucy Johnson, Maia Atzemis, Sophie Antell, Sloane Santos, Courtney Johnson Not Pictured | Anna Jane Harben

Kyra Jockell, Ella Welke, Danielle Pelletier, Camille Jackson, Rika Kinoshita, Camilla Golden, Carolina Paz

Star Acrobats

Madeline Hardy, Atira Lawrence, Toni Tomori, Anna Charlotte Rumpf,

Elizabeth Adams, Arabella Isaacs, Slone Buffton, Riley Bayless

Kimani James, Kimorea Coates, Lauren Brogan, Charlotte Wrigley

Abby Holsinger, Spencer Owen, Cameron Jinks, Emery Lussier

Atlanta Ballet 2

TheAtlanta Ballet 2 dancers are selected from all over the world and represent the artistic vision of Artistic Director Gennadi Nedvigin. These young individuals are dancers who have arrived at a defining point in their transitions to becoming professional dancers. They receive individual classes and coaching from esteemed faculty mentors. The intense level of training, opportunities to rehearse with the Atlanta Ballet company, and the experiences of their own performances help mold the young artists’ awareness of the high expectations demanded of professional company members.

Atlanta Ballet 2 dancers performed "Dust in the Wind" with the rock band KANSAS on the Atlanta and Nashville stops of their 40th anniversary tour. Members of Atlanta Ballet 2 also choreographed on their fellow members during the Georgia Tech Arts: Skyline Series festival last spring. Most recently, Atlanta Ballet 2 dancers performed at the Buckhead Village Holiday Shop & Stroll.

In addition to Atlanta Ballet 2 performing in The Nutcracker, you can see this talented young ensemble as they dance Bruce Wells' Snow White at Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre in February.

Pictured above, left to right: Stephen Myers, Emmanuel López, Evelyn Robinson, Severin Brotschul, Santiago Bedoya, Samantha Schuermann, Kaitlin Matree Roemer, Ephraim Fowler, Nae Kojima, Lucas Labrador, Georgie Grace Butler, Laura Gracia, Avery Jarrard, Covin Washington, Margaret Kuefler, Jason McClung, Reira Ikeda, Hui Wen Peng.

Atlanta Ballet 2 dancers.

Jonathan Philbert & Benjamin Kuefler. Photo by Kim Kenney.

Atlanta Ballet Company Dancers

Nadyne Bispo Santos Coast of São Paulo, Brazil

Carraig New Juneau, Alaska

Emma Ontario,GuertinCanada

Erica Tuscon,AlvaradoArizona

Brooke Gilliam Boulder, Colorado

Thomas Davidoff Lincoln, England

Jessica Assef São Carlos, Brazil

Mikaela Lauryn D. Santos Manila,

Anderson Souza Santo Ângelo, RS, Brazil

Jacob Minneapolis,BushMinnesota

Keaton Leier Saskatoon, SK, Canada

Benjamin Kuefler Stow, Massachussetts

María José Esquivel Stamford, Connecticut

Brock Fowler Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

Emily Lexington,CarricoKentucky

Ángel Ramírez Trinidad, Cuba

Saho Sapporo,KumagaiJapan

SoJung Lee Chungju, South Korea

Jonathan Philbert New York, New York

Georgia Columbus,DaltonOhio

Guilherme Maciel São Paulo, Brazil

Denys Nedak Odessa, Ukraine

Ashley Shamong,WegmannNewJersey

Spencer Wetherington‡ Bridgeton, New Jersey

Kelsey Van Tine Naples, Florida

‡ Denotes an Atlanta Ballet Apprentice

Erik Dallas,KimTexas

Michael Caye Pittsburgh,

Sergio

Darian Kane Lincoln, California

Jessica He Rancho Cucamonga, California

Dylan Clinard High Point, North Carolina

Airi

Catherine Conley Chicago, Illinois

Miguel Angel Montoya Cali, Colombia

Anastasia Cheplyansky Saratoga, Florida