Fill the Holidays with Art: Ballet, Theatre, Opera

— from Susannah Weaver for Orcas Center —

Celebrate the season at Orcas Center with the Bolshoi Ballet in Cinema’s beloved holiday favorite The Nutcracker; partake in world-class drama in England’s Nation Theatre production of NT No Man’s Land; and explore the mysteries of love and the future of opera with the Metropolitan’ medieval romance L’Amour de Loin (Love from Afar), live in high-definition Cinema.

• The Nutcracker streams to Orcas Center on Wednesday, December 14 at 6:30 p.m.
• NT Live’s No Man’s Land live on screen Thursday, December 15 at 7:30 p..m.
• L’Amour de Loin from the Metropolitan Opera streams live on Sunday, December 18, at 1 p.m.

The world-renowned Bolshoi Theatre’s enchanting production of Tchaikovsky’s magical and cherished ballet streams to Orcas Center on Wednesday, December 14 at 6:30 pm. Christmas would not be complete without the enchanting tale of young Marie and her Nutcracker prince. The Nutcracker Ballet is based on the story The Nutcracker and the Mice King written by E.T.A. Hoffman, about a young girl who dreams on Christmas Eve of a Nutcracker Prince and his battle against a Mouse King and his fierce arm. Marie’s wooden nutcracker doll then transforms into a beautiful prince who takes her on a magical journey. An all-time favorite ballet for the holidays, the Bolshoi’s The Nutcracker Ballet is the perfect holiday outing for the whole family

Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker was first performed over 120 years ago. This version is danced by the Bolshoi’s principals, and staged by Russian ballet master Yuri Grigorovich. The gorgeous costumes, exquisite production, and enchanting characters set to Tchaikovsky’s unforgettable music will transport you to a fairyland of magic where you’ll see every detail as if you are sitting front row center of the grand Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow. The Nutcracker will transport children and adults alike to a world of magic and wonder for the holiday season.

NO MANS LAND by Pinter, , Writer – Harold Pinter, Director – Sean Mathias, Set and costumes – Stephen Brimson Lewis, Lighting – Peter Kaczorowski, Sheffield, 2016, Credit: Johan Persson

Two of England’s finest actors, Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart return to the West End stage in Harold Pinter’s No Man’s Land, broadcast live to cinemas from Wyndham’s Theatre, London. One summer’s evening, two aging writers, Hirst and Spooner, meet in a Hampstead pub and continue their drinking into the night at Hirst’s stately house nearby.  As the pair become increasingly inebriated, and their stories increasingly unbelievable, the lively conversation soon turns into a revealing power game, further complicated by the return home of two sinister younger men, played by Owen Teale and Damien Molony. Don’t miss this glorious revival of Pinter’s comic classic. The broadcast will be followed by an exclusive Q&A with the cast and director Sean Mathias. According to Time Out: “Two of the greatest actors ever born in one of the greatest plays ever written…Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart live up to their legend.”

L’Amour de Loin (Love from Afar), which premiered in 2000, is one of the most highly praised operas of recent years. Kaija Saariaho’s yearning medieval romance tells of the longing at the heart of love. This 2016 Met Live production by Robert Lepage is co-produced with L’Opéra de Québec, in collaboration with Ex Machina.

Debuting Finnish conductor Susanna Mälkki leads the performance, which stars Susanna Phillips and Eric Owens as the lovers, and Tamara Mumford as the pilgrim who carries messages of love between them. According to the New York Observer: “The visual highlight of the evening, and indeed one of the most breathtaking sequences I’ve ever witnessed in an opera house, is Lepage’s depiction of a storm across the ocean, an ideal visual counterpart to Saariaho’s lurching brass fanfares.”

Tickets for these streaming on screen events at Orcas Center including Bolshoi’s The Nutcracker, NT Live’s No man’s Land and The Met Live in HD L’amour de Loin are $20, $15 for students, $2 off for Orcas Center members, and may be purchased at www.orcascenter.org or by calling 376-2281 ext. 1 or visiting the Orcas Center Box Office open Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 12 – 2 pm.

$5 subsidized tickets are available at the Box Office. For more information about Orcas Center’s 2016-2017 season visit www.orcascenter.org.