Dancers in The Nutcracker Sweet don’t have to worry about having a specific type of training. All they need is the desire to be part of the storied ballet.
“There are lots of Nutcrackers throughout the Richmond area, but you can’t just go and audition unless you sign up for classes,” says Norvell Robinson, president and artistic director of the non-profit PDM Productions.
The non-profit provides educational experiences in the performing and fine arts to children and adults in every community, regardless of skill, experience or financial ability. Its flagship production is The Nutcracker Sweet, a full-length version of the ballet.
With The Nutcracker Sweet, “you bring whatever ability you have. We adjust things to the people that show up,” he says. “We build a lot of our costumes. We can change the costumes depending on who comes.”
The majority of performers come from different dance schools in the area, everywhere from the City of Richmond and surrounding counties to Petersburg and Prince George, and that gives them the chance to meet other dancers from different schools.
“They stay in touch with each other until the audition comes around next year,” Robinson says.
Performers range in age from four to 70-plus and must commit to ten weekends of rehearsals. The number of performers changes each year and has been anywhere from 49 to 95.
“This year we have a cast of 89,” Robinson says. “We choreograph to their ability. We try to push them beyond their perceived ability, and then they rise to the occasion. By the time they are on stage, they are raring to go and are pleased with what they are doing.”
Robinson knows how challenging it can be to put together a major production. He’s no stranger to the dance world or the ballet. A native Richmonder, he trained with the School of the Richmond Ballet and North Carolina School of the Arts. During his dance career, he toured internationally with an Italian touring company in A Chorus Line and spent 16 years as a soloist and principal dancer in the Richmond Ballet Company.
Some of the dancers in The Nutcracker Sweet have longevity with the production as well. Some have been involved for ten years. “We have one dancer, if she continues through her senior year in high school, who will have been involved for twelve years,” Robinson says.
“A couple of the youngest performers will happily say this is their third year with show, and they are only seven,” he adds. “When they were four, they were nervous. When we were rehearsing, some of the younger kids would cry for the first two weeks, but then they were all in. They always do a good job.”
They are on their own when they are on stage, he adds. “They have to know what they are doing. They learn it all, and they practice. It’s pretty amazing, what they do.”
The Nutcracker Sweet will be performed at Manchester High School on Dec. 6, 7 and 8. Tickets are $20 until November 15. After November 15, tickets are $28. For more information visit, PDM Productions.
