The Nutcracker comes to the cinema
When the lights went down and a hush fell over the audience you could have been forgiven for thinking you were right there in the Royal Opera House.
The opening night of the The Royal Ballet’s version of The Nutcracker was beamed out to cinemas across the world and Showcase Cinema, Castlegate, Dudley, was among those packed out for the occasion.
Strictly Come Dancing judge Darcey Bussell was on hand to present the event with around a half-an-hour build up before the curtain went up.
With my two young children sitting alongside me who struggle to sit through a kids movie nevermind a full-blown ballet, I wasn’t sure how far into the performance we would get before I had to head for the exit with them causing a ruckus. But how wrong I was.
As it turned out they were both enchanted from the beginning and ended up pirouetting out of the cinema into the night.
Sarah Lamb was stunning as the Sugar Plum Fairy along with her dance partner Steven McRae.
The Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy had the audience glued to the big screen in awe – my two girls even stopped munching on the popcorn for a moment.
The Arabian Princess dance was also a show-stopper and drew perhaps one of the biggest applauses of the night from the crowd in London and 130 miles away in Dudley.
And Francesca Hayward was perfectly cast as Clara.
But it wasn’t just the dancers who made this show so special.
The sprouting Christmas tree that went from 10ft to 30ft was something to see with snow falling on cue.
This was as Christmassy as it gets and the girls have already written to Santa for ballet shoes.
