Northwest Ballet Co. brings holiday classic to life
<p>Riley Freeman dances the role of the Snow Queen.</p>
Some children, while nestled all snug in their beds, dream of visions of sugar plums dancing in their heads. Other children dispense with dreaming and dance that vision.
This Thanksgiving weekend marks the 18th annual “Nutcracker” by the Northwest Ballet Co. The troupe will dance in Bigfork’s theater by the bay. Led by Director Marisa Roth and her elite company members, the five performances include dancers from the Northwest Ballet School and members of the community.
Roth said she is “always so excited to see how everyone not only becomes their character, but how much they grow as dancers and technicians over the couple of months they work on the show.”
Some of the performers, rightly challenged by the casting, include Northwest Ballet Company principal Mackenzie Heaton as the Sugar Plum Fairy, soloist Morgan Sego as the Dew Drop, soloist Riley Freeman as the Snow Queen and Corp de Ballet member Eliza Reichner as Clara.
Heaton said she is thrilled to dance the company's prized roll and is excited that all her hard work in the dance studio will culminate on the stage for her final season with the Northwest Ballet Company before graduating from Flathead High School this June.
“My older sister danced with the Northwest Ballet Company, and going to the ‘Nutcracker’ was always my favorite time of the year,” she said. “The dancers captivated me. To dance those same roles on the same stage has been a surreal experience.”
Tickets for reserved seating are available Monday through Saturday now until show days at the Bookshelf on First and Main streets in Kalispell. Call 756-2665 for information.
On show days, tickets will be available at the Bigfork theater box office one hour before the performances start.
Ticket prices are $20 for adults, $17 for seniors age 65 and over and $15 for children 12 and under.
Shows are at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Friday, Nov. 25 and Saturday, Nov. 26, and at 4 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 27. All shows are at the Bigfork Center for the Performing Arts.
The ever-popular Sugar Plum Fairy Parade will follow the 2 p.m. matinees on Friday and Saturday.
For more information, call the Dance Art Center at 755-0760.