A sweetened 'Nutcracker' suite
N.C. Dance Theatre, Bonnefoux put new touches on a classic
STEVEN BROWN
sbrown@charlotteobserver.com

The Land of Snow will have a new sparkle tonight when N.C. Dance Theatre brings back its annual production of Tchaikovsky's "Nutcracker."

NCDT will surround Jean-Pierre Bonnefoux's choreography with sets and costumes it bought recently from the Philadephia-based Pennsylvania Ballet. Bonnefoux, NCDT's artistic director, enthused last week about the supersized tree and rich costumes for the Christmas-party scene.

"It lookes like a postcard from the end of the 19th century," Bonnefoux said.

This is NCDT's second year performing Bonnefoux's child-centered staging, which casts budding dancers rather than grownup professionals as young Clara -- whose Christmas-gift nutcracker helps send her into fantasyland -- and her pesky brother Fritz. Yet Bonnefoux has tinkered a bit with his choreography.

As a new transition into the Land of Snow, seven girls will evoke the winds that stir up a winter snowfall. For Act 2, Bonnefoux has borrowed a Neapolitan dance from Tchaikovsky's "Swan Lake" score to add a treat to the Land of Sweets: In honor of the music's Italian flavoring, six dancers will join a soloist in a number he calls "Tiramisu."

The advantage of bringing a production back is that dancers can build on their experience. The two young dancers sharing the role of Clara played the tale's heroine last year, too.

Here are snapshots of each:

Pattersen Floberg

Age: 14.

Home: Denver, N.C.

School: Ninth-grader at Davidson Day School.

Has studied dance: Seven years, including 3 1/2 at NCDT's school.

On playing Clara a second year: "I'm...more familiar with the role, so I feel I can do more with it and be more free-spirited."

Daily routine: Wakes up about 6 a.m. and heads for school. When school lets out at 2:30 p.m., she makes the 30-minute trip to NCDT for her afternoon dance classes. She returns home around 8 p.m. to have dinner, spend time with family and "do homework usually until almost 2 a.m."

Hobbies: Swimming, hanging out with friends, singing and Broadway musical theater.

Ellen Hummel

Age: 15.

Home: Greenville, S.C.

School: Tenth-grader studying online.

Has studied dance: Ten years, including four at NCDT's school.

Daily routine: Ellen travels an hour and a half each way from Greenville, S.C., to NCDT's studios. She wakes up around 7:30 a.m. and starts schoolwork at her computer. Around 12:30 p.m., she eats lunch and heads to Charlotte for afternoon dance classes. At 6:30 p.m., she's done -- except for the return trip.

Hobbies: Readiing, drawing, acting, swimming and spending time with friends.

NUTCRACKER

WHEN: 7:30 p.m. tonight through Sunday and Dec. 21-23; 2 p.m. Saturday, Sunday and Dec. 22 and 23.

WHERE: Belk Theater, Blumenthal Performing Arts Center, 130 N. Tryon St.

TICKETS: $20-$69.

DETAILS: 704-372-1000; www.ncdance.org