<B>Don't Mess With 'The Nutcracker'</B> <BR>By Lisa Traiger in The Washington Post<P><BR>WASHINGTONIANS like their "Nutcracker" the old-fashioned way -- with opulent 19th-century party scenes, funny but fierce Mouse Kings, an astonishing growing Christmas tree and a girl-child Clara, who gets transported to a dream world where candy canes and marzipan dance. Though some adventurous choreographers have experimented with the venerable Christmastime ballet -- adding contemporary, psychological, sexual or violent overtones -- locals seem to prefer a simply told tale of a family gathering and a girl's dream of the Kingdom of the Sweets.<P><A HREF="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A33559-2001Nov29.html" TARGET=_blank><B>click for more</B></A><P><B>'Nutcracker'</B> <P><BR>A list of no less than 18 'Nutcrackers' in The Washington area. We don't usually put up listings, but this is such an extraordinary cultural event I couldn't resust including it.<P><A HREF="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A33545-2001Nov29.html" TARGET=_blank><B>click for more</B></A>

<B>Russian Orthodox</B><BR>A Traditional Reading Of 'The Nutcracker' <BR>By Alexandra Tomalonis in The Washington Post<P><BR>In the Washington Ballet's "Nutcracker," little girls play with dolls, little boys break them and grown-ups put everything back together without making too much fuss about it. An hour or two spent with Clara Silberhaus's blessedly functional family restores order to a dangerous and disorderly world.<P>The company's traditional version of the holiday classic, which opened Friday night at the Warner Theatre, doesn't bother with Freudian undertones and fashionable ambiguity. It's a straightforward and charming tale of a child's Christmas. <P><A HREF="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A18073-2001Dec9.html" TARGET=_blank><B>click for more</B></A>

<B>Let the Holiday Shows Begin</B><BR>Young Star Shines in 'The Nutcracker'<P>It's holiday time, and that means it's also time for "The Nutcracker". You couldn't do them without kids, so Ellen Edwards checked in with a young star to find out why she loves it.<P><A HREF="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A28766-2001Dec11.html" TARGET=_blank><B>click for more</B></A>

<B>'Nutcracker' marches into new territory</B><BR>By Gabriella Boston in THE WASHINGTON TIMES<P><BR>'Tis the season for "The Nutcracker," a holiday tradition for many children with its Christmas setting and storybook tale of Clara and her nutcracker-turned-prince who defeats the evil Mouse King. <BR>Many dance companies in the Washington area are performing variations of the creation, which is based on a story by E.T.A. Hoffmann. "The Nutcracker" ballet dates to 1891, when the legendary choreographer Marius Petipa commissioned Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky to write the music for it.<P><A HREF="http://www.washtimes.com/arts/20011215-25174120.htm" TARGET=_blank><B>click for more</B></A>

<B>'Nutcracker' fans celebrate dance</B> <BR>You know Christmas is just around the corner when the ladies who lunch take their young daughters — proudly wearing red velvet dresses and bows in their hair — to the Washington Ballet's Nutcracker Tea Party. By Gabriella Boston in THE WASHINGTON TIMES.<P><BR>"We celebrate the world of ballet, and we celebrate Christmas at the same time," noted tea-party co-chairwoman Mary Haft, whose daughter Laura was one of about 200 little girls in attendance. The event, which took place in the Willard Inter-Continental hotel's ballroom after last Sunday's matinee performance of "The Nutcracker Suite" at the Warner Theatre, raised an estimated $25,000 for the Washington Ballet (at $125 per ticket).<BR> <BR><A HREF="http://www.washingtontimes.com/entertainment/20011221-38070248.htm" TARGET=_blank><B>click for more</B></A>