We once owned an African Grey parrot, a bird known for it's incredible vocal abilities. He imitated voices in the correct range, sounds he heard both indoors and out, and recombined words and phrases to suit himself. He loved doing the neighbor's dogs. The bark was muffled, however, since he only heard it through closed doors and windows. He would ring the phone, then carry on one side of the conversation. He also tended to scold our other birds when they 'misbehaved' by whistling incessantly while trying to get some of whatever meal we were preparing. He would admonish them with a sharp, "Stop your screaming!" He learned to say whatever he wanted. Try and teach him something, however, and your efforts were usually met with a blank stare.
What does a parrot have to do with The Nutcracker, you ask?
For most ballet companies, it is the largest income-producer of the season. A successful run of Nutcracker performances can mean the difference between survival and shutters. For the New York City Ballet, Nutcracker is 30% of their annual revenue. This year saw them sell out 160 performances of the classic favorite. While Nutcracker is, for many, an annual tradition, attempts by arts organizations the world over to establish other traditions to take a little pressure off have been only marginally successful. Maybe you can help me with this, but I cannot name one other event which reaches the scale of The Nutcracker for it's tradition and it's ability to help sustain an organization. Messiah? A favorite this time of year, yes, but not for more than a few performances. Ditto the opera Hansel and Gretel. Try as we might, capturing lightning in a bottle a second time is nearly an impossibility. If you listen to pop music at all, you might remember Psy's Gangnam Style...a HUGE hit in 2012. The South Korean pop star was everywhere. YouTube was flooded with people dancing to his catchy tune, the Grammy audience was on it's feet dancing and singing as he performed, and his SECOND hit...er...never happened. Gangnam Style broke YouTube's view counter after it went over 2,000,000,000 views. Yes, that is billion with a 'B,' but once the novelty wore off, audiences moved on to something else. So enjoy The Nutcracker each season, take in a performance of Messiah, and then help out your favorite arts organization by attending a few performances of their many other great offerings throughout the year. It'll take a little pressure off of Clara and her prince. Read A Classic Retains It's Power to Enthrall (NY Times) Watch The Nutcracker at the Mariinsky Theatre conducted by Valery Gergiev. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=clWKDT4TQIk