'Nutcracker' returning to Sandpoint with holiday magic
KATHY HUBBARD / Contributing Writer | Bonner County Daily Bee | UPDATED 3 weeks, 6 days AGO
Pend Oreille Arts Council is bringing back a professional dance troupe from Victoria, British Columbia, in Canada, to perform "The Nutcracker" on Dec. 3 at 7 p.m. at the Panida. Tickets are on sale now for this often-sold-out performance.
Photo courtesy PEND OREILLE ARTS COUNCIL
Nothing starts the happy holiday season off better than a professional performance of "The Nutcracker."
Pend Oreille Arts Council is delighted to announce that the Ballet Victoria from Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, is excited to come here for one performance Dec. 3 at 7 p.m. at the Panida Theater. Tickets are on sale now and you’ll want to hurry to get yours because this uniquely enchanting event will sell out.
Ballet Victoria was founded in 2002 as a boutique professional dance company. They say that their performance of "The Nutcracker" has everything you would expect from a Ballet Victoria production. Calling it “an original Christmas tale danced to Tchaikovsky’s timeless 'Nutcracker' score,” the production boasts lively dance, hilarious pantomime, beautiful costumes, magic and a few surprises for the whole family.
Written by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, the classic ballet is an adaptation of Alexandre Dumas' 1844 short story "The Nutcracker," which is a retelling of E.A.A. Hoffmann's short 1816 story, "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King," according to Wikipedia. Set on Christmas Eve, the story tells a holiday tale as seen through the imagination of a young child and a nutcracker doll.
Joining Ballet Victoria on stage will be our local dance school students. Giving our local youth the opportunity to dance with a professional troupe is a unique and unforgettable experience. The Cocollala Conservatory’s Khandis Pettingill will direct our youngsters in roles that will teach them every aspect of professional performance. If your ballet dancer is interested in participating they can contact their dance school or the Conservatory directly.
Pettingill studied at Ballet Etudes School of Dance in Arizona, earned a full scholarship to Houston Ballet Academy when she was only 14 years old and attended the Paris Opera Ballet summer program as a foreign exchange student. Her credits include having danced several roles in "The Nutcracker" including the role of Sugar Plum Fairy.
This production is family friendly. POAC’s mission is always to bring world-class cultural events to Bonner County for as low a price as possible. This performance will cost $45 plus tax for adults and $20 plus tax for children under 18.
Tickets are available at the POAC Gallery, 313 N. Second Ave., downtown Sandpoint, or online at artinsandpoint.org. For more information call 208-263-6139.