Fun Freetime: Evergreen City Ballet Nutcracker

 

Evergreen City Ballet reimagines the Nutcracker experience with an exciting at-home dance film. Nutcracker Suites explores the origin and history of this popular ballet in a unique "docu-dance" film. The production draws from Evergreen City Ballet's 25+ year legacy of celebrating inclusion, artistry, and community through dance, and includes inspiration from Artistic Director Bennyroyce Royon's Filipino cultural heritage.   Nutcracker Suites is more than a performance film! The experience will bring audiences beyond the stage into the Evergreen City Ballet Nutcracker universe with a variety of stories, for a one-of-a-kind show that will delight all ages.  Evergreen City Ballet is pleased to partner with the Bellevue Youth Symphony Orchestra for the iconic Waltz of the Flowers, and beloved Seattle performer Mx. Aleksa Manila will reprise her 2019 role of Mother Ginger. The performance also includes two very special guest artists from New York City Ballet, Georgina Pazcoguin (Co-Founder, Final Bow Yellow Face) and Alec Knight. All dances were filmed in November of 2020 and have never been performed before.  Gather your family or social pod, put on your finery, and join us for one of three versions of the film. Each week's edit will feature a different chorus of talented local dance students. Once purchased, you'll have 72-hours to watch the film. Downloadable activity books will be available online to engage younger audiences.   ----   Nutcracker Suites streams from December 11th - 14th; 18th - 20th; 25th - 27th ---- TICKET INFO $75.00: On Demand Nutcracker Suites Premier Film Package (4-pack Trophy Cupcake, digital program and poster) $30.00: On Demand Nutcracker Suites Film with digital program Tickets available at Evergreen City Ballet website

About Nutcracker Suites This special performance "docu-dance" film goes behind the scenes to capture the essence of Evergreen City Ballet: the classes, the rehearsals, and all the busy goings on in the studio. Audiences will also have a unique opportunity to see Artistic Directory Bennyroyce Royon at work, staging dancers, designing the set, and coordinating the many talented designers who bring the production to life. The Nutcracker itself will be presented in a non-traditional fashion, with interviewing storylines throughout.

About Artistic Director Bennyroyce Royon Bennyroyce Royon is a Filipino-American director, choreographer, and dancer based in Brooklyn, NY and Seattle, WA. He received a BFA in Dance from The Juilliard School in 2006. As a performer and collaborator he has worked on Broadway (The King and I), Off-Broadway (Artist of Light), at The Metropolitan Opera (Madama Butterfly, Turandot, The First Emperor), at the New York Philharmonic (The Cunning Little Vixen), and with dance companies including Armitage Gone! Dance, Sidra Bell Dance New York, Carolyn Dorfman Dance, Alaska Dance Theatre, The Nilas Martins Dance Company, Collective Body Dance Lab, Cas Public, and Bad Boys of Dance. Royon has been noted by The New York Times for his "keenly focused, succinct way with movement." He has worked with choreographers Aszure Barton, Karole Armitage, Darrell Grand Moultrie, Christopher Gattelli, Greg Zane, Sidra Bell, and Carolyn Dorfman, among others. He has appeared on PBS Great Performances, Good Morning America, and the music videos of Son Lux and My Brightest Diamond. Read his full bio here About Evergreen City Ballet From its humble but visionary beginnings, Evergreen City Ballet continues to provide high quality dance education, professional-level performances, and a nurturing place for students, families, and community members to flourish. Beginning from the leadership of Founding Artistic Director Wade Walthall (1994-2008), ECB continues to shape young dancers into successful professionals in the field of dance and beyond, and cultivates a culture of excellence within the communities it serves. ECB’s mission is to provide high quality dance education and performance opportunities to students of all ages and to enrich the diverse communities in the Puget Sound region through performances, outreach, and community engagement initiatives. Our long-term vision is to be a nationally recognized, premier, pre-professional ballet school with a studio company that cultivates excellence, diversity, inclusiveness, and innovation.