Christmas at the opera, but Amal Choucri Catta is sadder than usual Tchaikovesky's Nutcracker; Cairo Ballet Company, artistic director Erminia Kamel; Cairo Opera Orchestra, conductor Nader Abassi; the ballet students of the Academy of Arts, supervisor Ivette Naguib. Cairo Opera House Main Hall, 22-29 December 2005 Once again Christmas witnessed a plethora of instrumental and vocal concerts, closing the year, this time with a charming revival of Tchaikovesky's Nutcracker ballet, performed for six nights at Cairo Opera's main hall by our local ballet company, with the participation of young ballet students the Cairo Opera Orchestra , conducted by Nader Abassi. Based on "Nussknacker und Maeusekoenig", a tale by the German author Ernest Amadeus Theodor Hoffmann, featured in his book Die Serapionsbrueder, the ballet's original version was choreographed by Lev Ivanov, with a bar-by-bar collaboration between Marius Petipa and Piotr Ilitch Tchaikovesky , who is generally considered the greatest Russian composer of his generation. Tchaikovesky straddled the divide between Russian and Western European music, avoiding the nationalistic approach of some of his fellow countrymen while infusing his work with native folklore. The famous Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg made a most perceptive remark about him: "He is melancholic almost to the point of madness. He is a beautiful and good person, but an unhappy one: either one has others or oneself to fight." The composer's life was dominated by internal struggles, but external ones were present too: his family pushed him into studying law before he turned to music, studying at the Rubinstein Musical Institute which at a later date would become the St Petersburg conservatoire. He achieved plenty of recognition in his lifetime, though the early death of his mother left him deeply traumatised, and his lifelong struggle with his homosexuality caused him torment. His marriage to a young student who had written to him declaring her love was doomed from the start. Theories abound regarding his death of infected water and whether it was suicide, possibly under coersion. But the sense of constant yearning adds to his perennial appeal. Few composers are more popular with audiences: his music is extremely tuneful, luxurious and colourfully scored; it is filled with emotional fervour and addresses the heart rather more than the head. He was afflicted by extreme fluctuations between elation and depression, with each success followed by a period of introspective gloom. It stemmed from a psychological defect rather than "typical Russian melancholy", one that showed itself also in his attitude to travel. As soon as he left Russia he was ill with homesickness, but once back he was restless to be off again. After the success of his opera The Queen of Spades in 1891, Tchaikovesky was commissioned to compose the Nutcracker. He was, however, reluctant to write the music, as he disliked the story. But his flamboyant score has become a lasting success. The "waltz of the flowers" is spectacular: a sequence of ascending woodwind arpeggios begins the movement, introducing the harp, which gradually crackles to life, bursting into an electrifying Cadenza. The rest of the orchestra quietly joins in, playing an infectiously happy waltz that passes from one instrument to another before ending in a loud and energetic finale. Each movement vividly captures the character of the dancers, who together bring to life the jewel of romantic ballet. Here as elsewhere the Nutcracker has turned into a real Christmas favourite, with its well-known melodies, such as the Dance of the Sugarplum Fairy, giving an ethereal sound. It was featured for many years at the Cairo Opera during Christmas time, before inexplicably disappearing from the programme. And its present revival in December was received with enthusiasm by young and old, who gave in to the enchantment of the music no less than to the lovely spectacle. As the story goes, a Christmas party is taking place at Clara's home: the curtain rises to guests hurrying to the party while snowflakes fall and the orchestra plays the joyful overture. Drosselmeyer, the strange magician, is also on his way, performing tricks to chase away some hoodlums. Suddenly the snowflakes disappear, revealing Clara's home with the large hall and the enormous Christmas tree at the back. The sets and the general stage scenery have not changed. Neither have the costumes, though the colours do seem fresher in brighter light. Presents and pastries, toys and cakes are shared by the children, but no one wants the Nutcracker, "an ugly doll dressed up as a Hussar". Clara, beautifully interpreted by the young and promising Zeinab Mohammed, decided she would take it. Drosselmeyer, interpreted for many years by the excellent Serguey Bolonsky, was welcomed by the audience: he shared the part with Hani Hassan, who has made a name for himself as "Zorba". The evening at Clara's was filled with merriment, music and dance: even old grandpapa was trying a few steps with grandmama while their friends looked on. When the party was over and the guests had departed, Clara sneaked back to the hall to check on her newly acquired prize. On the stroke of midnight, however, strange things started happening: the Christmas tree, growing higher, never stopped growing, while the toys came to life and the room was suddenly filled with an army of mice who started a merciless battle against the toy soldiers. Scared, little Clara on her chair was promptly saved by Drosselmeyer as the Nutcracker turned into a handsome prince taking lady Clara on an unforgettable trip to "Konfituerenland" where they met the sugarplum fairy while watching the Spanish chocolate dance, the Arabian coffee dance, the Chinese tea dance and the Matroshka dolls' Russian dance, as well as the dance of the snow and the beautiful "waltz of the flowers", with a spectacular finale. The audience was given some of the loveliest pas-de-deux by Alexander Onychenko and Nour Saad as the prince and Katia Ivanova and Juselle Suleimanova as the adult Clara. Yet choreographer and artistic director Erminia Kamel changed the grande finale, bringing back young Clara and her Nutcracker into "Konfituerenland" instead of letting her wake from her dream at home, under the Christmas tree. As the curtain fell, the happy audience cheered all the more heartily, realising, yet again, that Christmas is never quite the same without the Nutcracker.
