The Nutcracker (Tour – Liverpool)

Cadbury's have a lot to answer for; once that familiar tune pipes up, as my companion remarked, you're so tempted to start singing along, despite the exquisite costume and performance. Daria Klimentova is also a delightfully spirited Clara, and the same can be said of her partners, or perhaps athletic: Junor Souza (the Nutcracker) and Vadim Muntagirov (Drosselmeyer's nephew).

Now why anybody should imagine a nutcracker makes an excellent Christmas surprise for young Clara (Micaela Infante) is a puzzle, but even her cheeky brother Freddie (Matthew Cotton) longs for it. Indeed, all the children in the Party scene should take a bow for their exuberance and expertise.

Drosselmeyer (Fabian Reimar), a stylish emcee, has more up his sleeve, although in this version the battle with the Mouse King erupts first, with the toys springing to life in the final act. Well, most of them; unfortunately, in a series of first class showcases, the somewhat ungainly Arabian interlude jars by comparison, especially given the marvelously sensual music.

Similarly, although costumes and staging are largely breathtaking, the scenery is not always obedient, and in some changes seems to lag behind the music. But the mansion, inside and out, is beautifully realized with an amazing sense of scale, and exterior scenes are truly a Winter wonderland.

The Nutcracker may be based on that hoary cliché: it was all a dream, the Mouse King (James Street, his gestures and attitude reminiscent of Robert Carlisles‘s Rumplestiltskin) and his minions being rather nightmarish, particularly with the skull–like headpieces, but nonetheless it remains a dream of a ballet, and an enchanting evening.

– Carole Baldock