THE HOLIDAY SEASON IS HERE!

Since last week's blog was cut short due to the holiday, this week is jam packed! I'm going to talk about my tour of the scene shop, my interview with the costume shop manager about The Nutcracker, and also include a quick Q&A with some of the dancers!

I've said it before and I'll say it again; It's Nutcracker fever here at BalletMet and I could not be more excited. Yes, this is a very busy time of the year, but I am swept up in the holiday spirit and am thrilled to be a part of the madness!

To begin, I want to talk about my trip to the scene shop! Attached to the performance space, the scene shop holds all the props from past performances, including The Great Gatsby, Aladdin and even the carriage from Dracula which was made in the shape of a skull! It was very exciting to be around all the well-known props that have been used for years!

Here are some pictures!

The sleigh from The Nutcracker!

Dracula's Carriage!

And this is from the upcoming Carmina Burana!

Costume time! I was able to speak with Costume Shop Manager Rebecca Turk again, but this time, it was all Nutcracker.

"Busy, exciting, frantic, anxious, fun , overwhelming, rewarding," Rebecca had to say about working in the costume shop during Nutcracker season. She said that even though this show is put on yearly, there is still always more work to do because it is much larger in scale than the other shows. This includes fitting, altering and repairing costumes from the previous season, as well as building some new ones to replace others.

"The costumes need to exceed the expectations of the audience. They need to be extra-special, but also work with the existing costumes onstage," explains Rebecca.

I asked Rebecca what are some of her favorite costumes to work with and she said that it changes by the day because she loves the challenge of designing new costumes. And although I tried to learn the secret behind the nutcracker costume, Rebecca, as she should, would not budge.

"I do not have clearance to give away the secrets of the magic :) " says Rebecca.

When asked about her final thoughts on the season, Rebecca said that she will not have any final thoughts until the show is over, which at that point she will begin thinking about next season's Nutcracker.

"It's kind of like the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade that way," says Rebecca.

Also, as I mentioned before, I was able to have a quick Q&A with some of the dancers; Emily Ramirez, Gabriel Smith and Andrew Notarile. Since they are asked about dance all the time, I decided that I should come up with the most randoms questions I could think of instead..

Emily Gabe Andrew

Photos by Will Shively

1. Feet are imperative to dancers. So, if you haven't already, what would you name your feet?

"oooooo and aaaaaah" ---Gabe

"sasha and fierce! haha" ---Emily

2. If you could do a duet with any celebrity, who would be the most fun to dance with?
"Keira Knightly"--- Gabe

"Johnny Depp"---Emily

"Malin Akerman" ---Andrew

3. What is one food item that is always in your fridge on any given day?

"Queen olives! The big green ones mmmmm..." ---Emily

"Oreos" ---Andrew

4. If you were a tutu, what would your tutu look like?

"Red satin with black feathers!" ---Emily

5. Lastly, what is one thing you love to do on your day off?

"Play and compose music" ---Gabe

"Go shopping with my husband in comfy clothes" ---Emily

"Sleep in" --- Andrew

DON'T FORGET!

**The Nutcracker starts next Friday--make sure you're there!

**And next week I will finish my internship with BalletMet so make sure you check out my last blog! : )