Nothing is certain but death, taxes and holiday presentations of The Nutcracker. Beginning the week after Thanksgiving and leading almost all the way up to Christmas Eve, the classic ballet — about the fantastic dreams that a young girl has after her godfather gives her a nutcracker doll — is a seasonal tradition in much of the culture-loving world. Two venerable productions open this week and both are worthy of notice. Mahaffey Theater plays host to Moscow Ballet's Great Russian Nutcracker, which features a cast of 50 dancers, live musical accompaniment by the Moscow Symphony Orchestra, luxurious costumes, hand-painted sets and larger-than-life puppets. The Miami City Ballet stages George Balanchine's Nutcracker at Ruth Eckerd Hall. The locally-centric event boasts a cast of more than 100 dancers, including students from area dance studios, and Tchaikovsky's timeless score is performed live by The Florida Orchestra. Moscow Ballet, 7:30 p.m. Fri.-Sat., Dec. 8-9, 400 First St. S., St. Petersburg, $27-$65, mahaffeytheater.com; and Miami City Ballet, 8 p.m. Fri., 1 p.m. Sat., 2 p.m. Sun., Dec. 8-10, 1111 N. McMullen-Booth Road, Clearwater, $29.50-$45.50, rutheckerdhall.com.
This article appears in Dec 6-12, 2006.
