November 2024 saw the world premiere of a brand-new Nutcracker for English National Ballet (ENB), choreographed by Aaron Watkin (Artistic Director) and Arielle Smith, and with designs by Dick Bird.
The Nutcracker was the subject of our very first British Ballet Now & Then blog post in 2017, when we wrote about ENB establishing the tradition of performing the ballet annually in this country.
In December 2024 and January 2025 Rosie and Rebecca went to see the new production, and here are their thoughts …
Rosie: Shall we start by talking about the designs? I was following the posts on ENB’s social media before I first saw the production, and I really enjoyed watching the interview with Dick Bird where he discusses the sets and costumes. I loved the idea that we experience the Edwardian setting inside an Edwardian theatre—the London Coliseum.
Rebecca: Yes, I really enjoyed the setting in Edwardian London with the nods at Mary Poppins—the Chimney Sweeps and Suffragettes. It made the setting seem very familiar.
English National Ballet dancers © Photography by ASH
Rosie: On the other hand, I don’t think there’s any getting away from the fact that Cheesemonger Uromys Grimsewer with his gang of Street Children look like they come straight out of the pages of Oliver Twist, which was published in the 1830s, but I don’t think there’s any point in being picky about historical accuracy in this case.
Rebecca: Ha, I think that’s ok, though—no one is claiming realism, and they’re all connected to London history, or familiar literature set in London and made into musicals. And Grimsewer is a fantastic name!
Rosie: I think Dickens would approve … Even before the performance started I was entranced by the frontispiece: I loved the way the tree baubles glistened and was fascinated by the Nutcracker’s mouth opening from time to time.
Rebecca: That’s exactly the kind of detail in design that I loved—I don’t think I’ve ever seen a Nutcracker costume with a lever at the back. And then there was the Knight in Shining Armour—you could see the joints really clearly. That attention to detail is something I really appreciated.
Rosie: I noticed it in particular in some of the headgear in Act II, set in the Land of Sweets, like the cinnamon stick hats and headdresses for the Buttercream Roses.
Rebecca: And the Liquorice top hat.
Rosie: Do you know, I think everyone I’ve spoken to loved that dance, maybe because of the combination of design and choreography, and perhaps because of the children too.
Rebecca: I’m interested, because I’m not familiar with the music for that dance.
Rosie: It’s not actually in all productions I’ve seen, but it was originally for Mère Gigogne. In Balanchine’s Nutcracker she’s called Mother Ginger, but she also appeared in London Festival Ballet’s 1957 production by David Lichine with the name of “Madame Regnier”. She’s similar to the Old Woman who Lived in a Shoe. She comes on stage in a huge frock, then her children run out from under the frock, and after they dance they return underneath her petticoats again.
Rebecca: Oh I see. So there’s a direct link—now the children come out of the Liquorice Allsorts box.
Rosie: Yes, and the Grandmother from Act I is on top of the box.
Rebecca: I thought the children looked great in their Liquorice Allsorts outfits and their movements complemented the soloist’s choreography well. He had lots of quirky bendy, bouncy, curvy movements …
Rosie: Haha! Quirky and bendy—just like Liquorice Allsorts! Yes, I see circles all over the place—on the costumes for the children and the soloist round the arms, legs and bodices, in the soloist’s port de bras and the funny little circles of his head. I think the choreography reminds me of Bassett’s Catherine wheels and bootlaces, and the round coconut flavoured ones in pink and yellow.
Rebecca: Memories of childhood … Again, you could see the different Allsorts in the children’s tutus and headdresses. I read in the programme that a phenomenal number of balls were sewn into their costumes to represent the aniseed-flavoured ones in blue and pink. And it really did pay off.
Rosie: I think design is probably more important for you than me, but I couldn’t help gasping when the curtain opened on the Ice Realm.
Anna Nevzorova as Ice Queen (c) Johan Persson
Rebecca: Yes, all the glittering ice stalagmites, and stalactites cascading down from that fantastical tree. Magical. But what did you think of the choreography? I know you love the Royal Ballet “Dance of the Snowflakes”.
Rosie: Yes, I do. It’s not just that it’s based on the original choreography by Lev Ivanov (there’s a notation score for it), but the imagery of the snow is really clear—the dancers are constantly moving, weaving in and out, making snowflake patterns, fluttering their hands, then blocking together like a snowdrift. It all looks very easy and organic.
Rebecca: Yes, this new choreography didn’t quite have that fluidity, though I guess the dancers are icicles and snowflakes, so it’s not quite the same.
Rosie: Ah, I didn’t really twig that. What I did enjoy was the Ice Queen’s Italian fouettés. I just love them—they’re so expansive and regal—but they don’t seem to be included in many ballets: I can only think of Gamzatti in La Bayadère, the Queen of the Dryads in Don Quixote, and the Lilac Fairy in some productions of Sleeping Beauty. So, ideal for the Ice Queen.
Rebecca: Something in the choreography that felt fresh to me was the way people were paired up in the Party Scene. I found it so refreshing to see women dancing with women as well as men, and girls dancing with one another, as often happens in real-life social gatherings. The social dancing in Nutcracker is so often too cleanly segregated according to gender.
Rosie: Exactly. And I love that it wasn’t only the boys who were being boisterous, noisy and disruptive. Let’s not pretend that girls can’t be boisterous too.
Rebecca: So lots to enjoy, and it looks really revitalised as a production.
Rosie: Yes, it does, and it’s a big cast, so plenty of opportunity to see lots of our favourite dancers.
With thanks to our good friend Rebecca for her contribution to this post
English National Ballet perform The Nutcracker at the London Coliseum 11 December 2025 to 11 January 2026.
© British Ballet Now & Then
British Ballet Now & Then 