The Nutcracker is the most important prop in the production. What some might not know is the amount of thought, design, and technology that went into the toy doll. “We looked at the most recent nutcracker and asked what was choreographically valuable,” says Property Master Cory Thorell, who held the position with Ballet West for over 20 years. “We came up with a list: the height, weight, impact resistance, the open mouth mechanism, and the detachable head were all values of the doll. It would not cross most people minds, but changing any of these small details would end up changing the choreography. For instance, the legs have to be thin enough for a child to wrap their hands around, and light enough to raise above their heads. Any small changes would mean deviating from a time-tested and beloved choreography.”
The Nutcracker is the most important prop in the production. What some might not know is the amount of thought, design, and technology that went into the toy doll. “We looked at the most recent nutcracker and asked what was choreographically valuable,” says Property Master Cory Thorell, who held the position with Ballet West for over 20 years. “We came up with a list: the height, weight, impact resistance, the open mouth mechanism, and the detachable head were all values of the doll. It would not cross most people minds, but changing any of these small details would end up changing the choreography. For instance, the legs have to be thin enough for a child to wrap their hands around, and light enough to raise above their heads. Any small changes would mean deviating from a time-tested and beloved choreography.”
The Nutcracker ‘doll’ has dramatically evolved over the decades. It began as a harlequin-esque, one-dimensional papier-mâché prop, carried on a stick. However, the overall structure was not balanced so it was often dropped as the children played with it.
– The nutcracker doll was once a flat, painted board
Designer Ron Crosby engineered the next generation. He created a three dimensional doll which looked more like a nutcracker, and in the opinion of many, much less sinister!
3-D rendition of the new Nutcracker, 2017.
Designer Ron Crosby engineered the next generation. He created a three dimensional doll which looked more like a nutcracker, and in the opinion of many, much less sinister!
3-D rendition of the new Nutcracker, 2017.
