During Ballet Theatre of Scranton’s very first free performance of “The Nutcracker,” the late Constance Reynolds came out onto the stage.
She stood near a tabletop Christmas tree and spoke in her Scottish brogue.
"She asked the audience to use their imaginations, and she said, ‘when the lights flash, imagine that the tree is growing through the rooftops’,” remembered Joanne Arduino, who danced in that very first performance.
Just like in the story of “The Nutcracker,” that Christmas tree has grown over the last 50 years of free performances. The tree now towers in the background while the 145 performers of all ages dance the ballet.
“It's the tradition. Many people, especially audience members, make it part of their holiday tradition. And year after year, even if they have family from out of town, they come back in town, and they make it a point to come to see ‘Nutcracker’,” said Arduino, now the artistic director of the Ballet Theatre.
Reynolds, an Edinburgh native, founded the Ballet Theatre of Scranton in 1958. She trained with the Royal Ballet and the British Ballet. The grand dame of ballet in the region was community-minded.
"She felt that the people of Scranton were always so welcoming to her, and that (was) what she wanted to give back," Arduino told WVIA's Erike Funke.
Reynolds worked with Marywood University to offer “The Nutcracker” as a Christmas gift to the city. An article in a 1976 edition of The Sunday Times called the ballet a “Yule Gift.”
Over the last five decades, more than 400,000 audience members have watched over 300 free performances, according to the Ballet Theatre. More than 2,400 pairs of pointe shoes have been worn by some of the dancers.
The show had gone through a venue change, moved its traditional weekend from December to November and weathered a global pandemic – a recorded version of the ballet was shown at the Circle Drive-In in 2020.
Arduino danced the Dew Drop Fairy in the Waltz of the Flowers and was the lead Chinese dancer in the first performance. She had just graduated from high school.
She says love brings people back to “The Nutcracker” every year, no matter the circumstance.
"I think the love of the people who do it, and it's not just the dancers. There's so many people behind the scenes that give of their time. We have so many volunteers from props and costumes and lighting and sound and scenery … and the dancers,” she said.
In between Monday’s educational performance for local students from all over the region and the second annual sensory-friendly show, volunteers, many parents of performers, worked backstage. The dancers were hungry, and they assured them that after bows, lunch was on the way. The volunteers fluffed and hung costumes and fixed ballet buns.
“They love to do it, and they love to give back to the community,” Arduino said.
'It's such a tradition'
The classic two-act ballet by Russian composer Tchaikovsky follows Clara, a young girl from a small town in Germany. It premiered in St. Petersburg, Russia, in 1892.
Arduino says the Nutcracker is a great introduction to ballet. It’s easy to follow.
“It's about one little girl's dreams and that anything is possible. And it's just very uplifting. I mean, it is, of course, a story, but I think the whole meaning of it is of love and hope and happiness,” she said.
Clara’s mysterious godfather, Drosselmeyer, gives her a nutcracker at her family’s Christmas Eve party. The nutcracker breaks, but Drosselmeyer, a toymaker, fixes it. Clara checks on the toy as the clock strikes midnight.
The family Christmas tree grows to crazy heights, and the nutcracker becomes life-sized. A battle ensues between an army of toy soldiers and the mice, led by the mouse king.
Clara helps the nutcracker defeat the mice. The toy then transforms into a prince and brings Clara to the Land of the Sweets.
The prince tells everyone that Clara saved him. For her bravery, she is given a parade of sweets.
Tea from China, candy canes from Russia, and coffee from Arabia. Dancers in different costumes with motifs from those countries perform for Clara.
Then, the Sugar Plum Fairy guides Clara home.
Clara awakes, clutching her nutcracker, wondering if it was all a dream.
"It's probably one of my favorite roles I've ever had,” Gia Vachino said.
This is the second year the 18-year-old Abington Heights senior is portraying Clara.
Vacchino encourages anyone who hasn’t seen "The Nutcracker" before to attend one of the free performances to follow Clara's journey.
“She truly just tells the story. She is full of curiosity, vulnerabilities. She has so much joy, and she takes everything to heart. So truly, just follow her. Be in the moment with the dancers. Listen to the music and follow their movement, and you'll understand,” she said.
Vacchino has been a part of the ballet since she was nine years old.
“It's such a tradition. It makes me so happy. I love performing every year. It brings me so much joy. I love seeing all the little kids' reactions and how much they enjoy it. It's just, it's a really great time,” she said.
Adapting 'The Nutcracker'
The scenes and the story pretty much remain the same. But Arduino will adapt certain steps to meet the needs of the dancers and the audience.
The performers are a combination of Ballet Theatre students and professional performers and dancers. Alumni of the theatre often come back to perform in the ballet.
“We always say, you always have a home here,” she said.
Last year, the Ballet Theatre added a sensory-friendly show.
"We felt it was important for the neurodiverse community to be able to experience ballet,” she said.
The show is shortened. It’s narrated, and the lights are softer. There’s a sensory corner set up by the University of Scranton for students and their families to sit.
Last year, 50 people attended the sensory-friendly show.
"There's 100 people coming, so we'll see from here,” she said.
This year's final waltz
In between Monday’s performance, Arduino gave notes to the dancers. They sat in a field of tulle on the theatre’s stage.
After all these years, Arduino still sees the joy in the audience, especially the children.
"Their eyes just light up. And some of them, they've never experienced live theater before, let alone a ballet. So it's their first experience. Some may never have had the opportunity," she said. "And so it's really important to us that it's for free, because young people need to experience dance and to experience the arts.”
The cast practiced bows at the end of the educational performance. Arduino asked everyone to reach to the side. A black and white photo of Reynolds was illuminated on the wall.
“And that was our founder, Constance Reynolds, who started this whole thing,” Arduino said.
This year, “The Nutcracker” closes on Nov. 30, which is a very special day for the Ballet Theatre and Reynolds, who died in 1995.
"Our closing show of our 50th anniversary is on her birthday. How appropriate?” Arduino said.
IF YOU GO
Performances of “The Nutcracker” are Friday, Nov. 28, Saturday, Nov. 29, and Sunday, Nov. 30, at noon and 5:30 p.m. at the Theatre at North, 1539 North Main Avenue, Scranton. The box office opens two hours before each performance. Tickets are free.
For more details, visit https://www.balletscranton.org/