Simon Hale watches the Birmingham Royal Ballet overcome misfortune.

Birmingham Royal Ballet
Birmingham Hippodrome
The Nutcracker

Technical glitches sporadically stole the limelight on the opening night of Birmingham Royal Ballet’s otherwise superb and sumptuous performance of The Nutcracker.

Sir Peter Wright’s traditional version of the ballet, created 25 years ago as his gift to Birmingham, continues to stand the test of time.

But Black Friday gremlins appeared to be at work particularly in the final transformation when a section of the scenery failed to descend and the toy soldiers went missing from the foot of the Christmas tree.

Earlier mishaps saw ballet student Clara’s flight through the clouds encounter a strong headwind, a cannon fire without making a sound, and magician Drosselmeyer’s first trick fail to come off. Fortunately these mishaps, noticeable only because the production is so rightly lauded for its sparkling theatrical magic and wonderful scenery, did not extend to the dancing which was pretty well flawless.

The ballet follows the adventures of Clara, who has been given an enchanted present on Christmas Eve. From being defended by toy soldiers against giant rats, she is taken to magical lands on a giant goose.

Karla Doorbar and Joseph Caley were matched superbly as Clara and the Prince, the former exuding childlike awe and the latter all charm and energy. Delia Mathews stood out too for an austere but sensual performance in an Arabian Dance that reached hypnotic heights.
But the evening belonged to Momoka Hirata as the visually stunning Sugar Plum Fairy. Her dancing in the grand pas de deux with the Prince was simply exquisite.

That is not of course to forget the true star of the show – the superlative Tchaikovsky score, which was expertly played by the Royal Ballet Sinfonia under Koen Kessels.

With the gremlins sure to be banished for the rest of the run, Birmingham ballet goers can look forward to the perfect start to the festive season.

The Nutcracker is in production until Sunday, December 13th.