The Joffrey Ballet’s altogether unique production of “The Nutcracker,” which for the first time this weekend arrived on the stage of its new home – the beautiful Art Deco-style Lyric Opera House – has never looked more glorious or been danced more ideally.
They did so by setting it against the many wonders of Chicago’s 1893 Columbian Exposition – the World’s Fair that put the city on the global map, showcased its immigrant population, introduced several technological wonders, and exemplified the brilliance of Daniel Burnham, the American architect and urban designer who envisioned it.
The ingenious artists who created this multifaceted Joffrey production that debuted in 2016 include choreographer Christopher Wheeldon, librettist Brian Selznick, set, costume and mask designer Julian Crouch, lighting designer Natasha Katz, puppet designer Basil Twist, the 59 Productions projection designer, and many others.
Of course, the dancers, ideally accompanied by the musicians of the Lyric Opera Orchestra , are of the essence.
At the center of what is a love story as well as an elaborate wintry dream are the Mother, a widowed immigrant sculptress from Eastern Europe who is preparing the model for The Republic , with the lovely, airborne Yumi Kanazawa as Marie, the sculptress’ daughter, Oliver Reeve Libke as her ideally mischievous younger brother, and the exuberant Hyuma Kiyosawa as Peter, the Impresario’s apprentice, who becomes Marie’s first love.
Edson Barbosa brought all his comic flair to Buffalo Bill’s Wild West show segment, and Fernando Duarte was the high-energy Chinese dancer encircled by two vivid orange dragons.
Before it’s all over, this grand “Nutcracker” and the fantasy world of the exposition returns to reality by way of a scene in the wooden shack that serves as the studio and temporary home of the sculptress and her children.