The Nutcracker - DVD

Damian Smith, Elizabeth Powell, Davit Karapetyan, DAvid Arce, Yuan Yuan Tan, Pierre-Francois Vilanoba, Vanessa Zahorian, and Maria Kochetkova perform in this San Francisco Ballet production of the Tchaikovsky ballet conducted by Martin West.

Vienna State Opera & ballet director Manuel Legris present the Nutcracker ballet in Nureyev's final choreography, the 1985 Paris version with two magnificent young soloists and the splendid Vienna corps de ballet. Nureyev's version enjoys a particular standing in the history of this well-known ballet in that it was the first to incorporate the psychology of E.T.A. Hoffman's fairytale on which the ballet was based. The critic Clive Barnes set the tone by remarking 'No version of the Nutcracker that we have ever seen has been more potently dramatic few have displayed so sharp an imprint of personal style. Recorded live from the Wiener Staatsoper April 2012. 102 minutes.

The Royal Ballet's The Nutcracker is the quintessential Christmas ballet. When her nutcracker toy comes to life, young Clara is transported by the magician Drosselmeyer to a magical world of excitement and delight. Lauren Cuthbertson and Federico Bonelli dance the exquisite Sugar Plum Fairy and her Prince; Francesca Hayward and Alexander Campbell take the roles of Clara and the Nutcracker; and Gary Avis is the mysterious, kindly Drosselmeyer. This performance celebrated Peter Wright's 90th birthday and a production that has been in The Royal Ballet's repertory for more than thirty years. With sumptuous period designs, spellbinding stage effects and of course Tchaikovsky's iconic score, The Nutcracker continues to enchant audiences of all ages. Filmed in High Definition and recorded in true SS. Inchfresh and reinvigorated - Nutcrackers come and Nutcrackers go but the Royal Ballet's version is a hardy perennial. Inch (The Stage) InchThe Royal Ballet's production of The Nutcracker, always handsomely traditional, has become a tradition of it's own.Inch (The Independent) InchFrancesca Hayward and Alexander Campbell make an enchanting couple, Inch (The Daily Telegraph)