Abigail Dunagan, Campus Carrier arts and living editor

With the holiday season right around the corner, the departments on campus are preparing to wrap up the semester with a variety of performances and events. This Friday and Saturday, the Berry College Dance company will be presenting a show titled “Not Your Normal Nutcracker.” This will be a performance of the 1892 ballet “The Nutcracker,” but with a unique twist on the ballet classic, incorporating different dance styles, such as contemporary jazz, tap and ballet. 

Junior Jessica Cross is a choreographer and a dancer in the show. This will be her third semester choreographing for Berry, and she has choreographed the arrival scene and the battle scene in the show. In addition to working on the choreography, Cross will be dancing in three other scenes. She initially got involved in the performance because she is a dance minor, and she danced in the show as a child. Although she is familiar with the ballet version, Cross has found it challenging to incorporate different styles of dance with the music that she is familiar with. “The Nutcracker” is well-known as a ballet, and the student choreographers at Berry have had to re-work the scenes from the classic to fit different styles of dance.  

“I did The Nutcracker growing up, and I’ve seen so many different versions of it,” Cross said. “They are still all traditionally ballet. Having to listen to that music and choreograph something that is not ballet has been hard.”

Sophomore Amanda Magle will be performing in the role of the Nutcracker. Preparation for the show began at the start of the semester. After auditions were held, and the choreographers determined the roles and practices began in the following weeks. Magle said that one of the biggest challenges with the preparation for this show has been making the performance unique to Berry, while still keeping the elements that make “The Nutcracker” a Christmas classic. 

“I think this show has been kind of stressful because ‘The Nutcracker’ is a big deal, and people know what it is,” Magle said. “There is a pressure to do well with everything, and to make sure that it all comes together.” 

Senior Ellie Lizdas will be choreographing and dancing in the show, and has been involved in Berry’s Dance Company since her freshman year. According to Lizdas, there are around 25 performers in the show, and the members practice for an hour each week. This week is tech week where the performers will rehearse on set with costumes to prepare for the opening performance. 

“It’s a really fun little community, and it’s people that I wouldn’t have met outside of Dance Company,” Lizdas said. “Going to rehearsal every week is always fun, and it’s a good little break from school, work and everything else going on.” 

The Dance Company does a show at the end of each semester, with the fall semester show typically being Christmas themed with no plot. This year’s performance of “The Nutcracker” will be different because while each dance is different, there is a storyline and characters. According to Cross, the Dance Company is planning to perform the “The Nutcracker” once every four years so that all dance students will have the opportunity to be in it. 

“I’m looking forward to seeing how the audience perceives it,” Cross said. “If the audience gets it, then we’ve done our job. I’m really excited to see what people think, and to get peoples honest opinions and thoughts so that we can tailor another show into audience’s way of interpreting.” 

“Not Your Normal Nutcracker” will be performed at the Sisters Theatre this Friday at 7:00 p.m., and Saturday at 2:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m.