THE NUTCRACKER

One of the most beloved ballet classics, based on E.T.A. Hoffmann’s fantastic fairy tale “The Nutcracker and the Mouse King,” The Nutcracker still delights audiences of all generations today. It was the last of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s three great ballets, which returned to the magical world of childhood and fairy tales just a year before his death. Soon after its 1892 premiere in St. Petersburg, the ballet became a favorite family classic during the holidays and one of the most popular ballets in general.In his version of The Nutcracker, Mauro de Candia provides a new look at this fairy tale through elegant scenographic and costume design solutions, with a dose of humor. With Hoffmann’s original literary work and the music of Tchaikovsky, de Candia creates a new world between dream and reality that is full of magic.

In short, Rijeka’s Nutcracker is different, a new performance of a ballet fairy tale on the Croatian stage, brave in relation to the musical template, exciting in the contemporary code of ballet dance, witty and distinctive in dance interpretations and appealing to a wide audience.
Maja Đurinović, Plesna scena.hr

Everyone who came to see the new Rijeka Nutcracker expected a classic Christmas ballet performance of one of the most performed ballets, but left surprised, because this was a wonderful story that required a mental transformation in this day and age.
Choreographer Mauro de Candia told a complete and interesting story with a fantastic and highly demanding choreography that corresponded to the music at all times. The scenography, costumes, lighting design and well-coordinated dancers, the dynamic play of each protagonist, the amazing fusion of reality and dream, all this emotionally affected the audience to the last tone and movement.
Gloria Fabijanić Jelović, HRT Radio Rijeka