Ballet Arizona will perform Ib Andersen’s The Nutcracker December 8-24 at Symphony Hall with LIVE MUSIC performed by The Phoenix Symphony. With the temperatures consistently in the triple digits, here are some fun facts about The Nutcracker to help you dream of the cooler weather to come!
- Ib Andersen’s The Nutcracker cost $1.8 million to create, involving more than 300 people on two continents.
- Fabio Toblini (costume designer) didn’t want his costumes for the mice to be too cute, so he modeled them after New York City subway rats.
- The 260 costumes in The Nutcracker were created in 17 shops across America, out of more than 6,500 yards of fabric and 10,000 yards of trim and lace. That’s nearly 10 miles of material!
- During the run of The Nutcracker, Ballet Arizona dancers will use 300 pairs of pointe shoes. Ballet Arizona’s budget for pointe shoes for December alone is $45,000.
- Costume department personnel will wash more than 125 loads of laundry during the run of The Nutcracker.
- All of Ballet Arizona’s dancers will perform several roles in The Nutcracker, making up different casts that alternate from show to show.
- The sets were created in four shops in England, Oregon, New York, and Arizona.
- More than 100,000 Austrian Swarovski crystals were used to create the sparkling backdrop in the snow scene.
- The production uses 25 different backdrops and nearly 1 mile of gaffer’s tape (black cloth tape).
Tickets to The Nutcracker are on sale to the public on July 10th. Buy early to get the best seats at the best price! To get early access to tickets to The Nutcracker and the rest of our upcoming performances, consider subscribing to the 17-18 Season!
