You may remember that last year me and my family were lucky enough to enjoy some of the wonderful musical events held the Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM). Last October we enjoyed their Hocus Pocus Young Explorers Concert and over Christmas we had a fantastic time at their Christmas Family Fun Day.
Recently the RNCM released their brand new Spring 2019 brochure, find out more here about what’s on including details of their next RNMC Young Explorers Concert- Mother Goose.
I was extremely excited to be invited back to the RNCM to see The Nutcracker and I. Me, my eldest and his Grandma took our seats in the theatre and eagly waited for the concert to begin.
Alexandra Dariescu The Nutcracker and I was advertised as:
‘A pianist, a ballerina, state-of-the-art animations and digital effects. The Nutcracker for the 21st century…..’
That was exactly what it was! The entire 50 mintue concert was performed by award winning pianist, Alexandra Dariescu. Soloist ballerina Desiree Ballantyne was the other artist performing. Everything else was animations and digital effects.
Alexandra Dariescu gave an incredible performance! The music that she made was phenomenal and just beautiful to listen to. Desiree Ballentyne floated across the stage with her flawless movements and magical grace.
Just in case you don’t know the story of The Nutcracker, it’s Christmas Eve and we watch Clara and her family decorate their tree. In this performance of The Nutcracker and I, the piano seems to be magic. As Alexandra Dariescu plays, the magic from the piano sends lights, baubles and presents to to family!
Clara is taken with a wooden Nutcracker that comes from one of the presents! In what feels like a dream, we follow Clara, the Nutcracker and some not-so-nice mice up into the Christmas tree! The digital effects at this point were spectactular, with the tree looking 3D as the audience feel they are going under the tree themselves!
Once the mice are defeated, the nutcracker is transformed into a handsome prince! Desiree Ballentyne and the animated prince dance through the snowflakes which is just beautiful!
We are then taken on a journey, a journey through countries! As Clara and the prince dance they meet the animated Sugar Plum Fairy as well as many other characters who dance their tradional dances.
This concert really was like nothing I’ve seen before, all three of us enjoyed it. From the music to the ballet to the breath-taking digital animation it was truly a magical experince!
Check out this clip of Alexandra Dariescu and The Nutcracker and I:
Photograph Credit: Nigel Norrington
Out and about mummy 