Nutcracker season

The time from Thanksgiving to about New Year's is Nutcracker season. The ballet, that is. It seems to be a seasonal favorite. The local cities have productions, either locally produced or performed by out-of-town ballet companies. The local ballet studios add plenty of cute kids to the productions.

We went to one tonight. A friend of ours was in it. She was charming and lovely, as always. We enjoyed the show. What's not to like? It may not be grand and novel art, but it is fine entertainment. The costumes were attractive, the scenery was simple but effective, and we liked the way the snow machine dripped occasional bits of snow throughout the ballet and not just during the snow scene.

The weather matched the show. It's snowing up here. Down there, there were only a few flakes. Up here, there are a few inches. We made it home safely. It is still snowing.

This version had a live orchestra. Some of them only have canned music. We enjoyed listening to music played by actual musicians directly in front of us.

The locals in the show included a choir and several dozen cute young dancers, ranging from little ones, 4-5 years old, to older dancers in their teens.

We all agree that we ought to get out to cultural events more often. They're usually quite fun.