To kick off winter quarter, Eight Counts Ballet Company, a new student-run group, premiered a rendition of The Nutcracker. While the production offered dancers a creative outlet, John Ferrara spoke with sources who report turbulent and frustrating practice conditions under the direction of the show’s executives. Here’s the story…
NORTHWESTERN’S EIGHT COUNTS BALLET COMPANY RECENTLY PUT ON A PERFORMANCE OF THE NUTCRACKER — A CHRISTMAS TIME FAVORITE.
FOR THE UNINITIATED, THE NUTCRACKER IS A FAIRY BALLET, WHICH FOLLOWS A YOUNG GIRL, CLARA, WHOSE IMAGINATION TAKES HER ON A WHIMSICAL CHRISTMAS ADVENTURE. THE PLAY IS ONE OF THE MOST ENDURING, WELL-LOVED EXAMPLES OF DANCE ON STAGE.
EIGHT COUNTS BOASTS THAT IT’S THE ONLY BALLET COMPANY ON CAMPUS. BUT INTERVIEWS WITH MEMBERS FROM THE NUTCRACKER EVIDENCED THAT ITS ONE-OF-ONE STATUS ENABLE THE COMPANY TO PUT TOO MUCH A BURDEN ON THE DANCERS AND MUSICIANS IT BRINGS INTO THE MIX.
IN AN ANONYMOUS INTERVIEW WITH A LEADING MEMBER OF THE CAST, WHO FEARED THAT A PUBLIC DISCUSSION WOULD LEAD TO HER RECEIVING POOR CASTINGS DOWN THE LINE, I GOT A BETTER GLIMPSE INTO WHAT EXACTLY HAPPENED IN THE LEAD UP TO THE PRODUCTION.
THE SOURCE TOLD ME SHE KNEW SHE’D BE IN THE PERFORMANCE BY MID-OCTOBER, BUT THAT THE PRODUCERS ONLY HOSTED TWO PRACTICES BEFORE WINTER BREAK. FOR CONTEXT, THE NUTCRACKER PREMIERED THE FIRST WEEKEND STUDENTS WERE BACK ON CAMPUS. THAT’S A QUICK TURNAROUND TO ONLY PRACTICE TWICE BEFORE CHRISTMAS.
IN THOSE TWO PRE-BREAK REHEARSALS, THE SOURCE HAD LEARNED WHAT SHE ESTIMATED WAS JUST 60% OF ONE OF HER DANCES. IN THE OTHER PRACTICE, THE CAST HAD A WALKTHROUGH THAT WAS
“…very rough.”
THE PRODUCERS ALSO TOLD THE CAST THEY’D REHEARSE VIA ZOOM OVER BREAK, WHICH DID NOT HAPPEN ACCORDING TO THE SOURCE.
THE SOURCE I SPOKE WITH SAYS SHE REALIZED THE SHOW WAS IN TROUBLE WHEN SHE GOT AN EMAIL FROM THE PRODUCERS THE NIGHT BEFORE WINTER CLASSES STARTED, SAYING TECH WEEK — A LABORIOUS FOUR-HOURS A NIGHT PROCESS — WOULD BEGIN THE NEXT DAY.
IN NONE OF MY INTERVIEWS DID ANY CAST MEMBER TAKE PERSONAL ISSUE WITH THE SHOW’S EXECUTIVES, WHO ARE FELLOW STUDENTS. THEY DID, HOWEVER, EXPRESS DISSATISFACTION IN HOW STUDENTS WERE ASKED TO PREPARE FOR THE SHOW.
MY FIRST SOURCE ALSO TOLD ME THAT CAST MEMBERS WERE ASKED TO LEARN ALMOST EVERYTHING IN THE FOUR DAYS LEADING UP TO THE SHOW. HEADING INTO TECH WEEK, THE SOURCE SAYS SHE DIDN’T KNOW A SINGLE PART OF ACT 1 OF THE SHOW.
AND ACCORDING TO THE SOURCE, THE WORST PART ABOUT THE RUNNING OF THE SHOW WASN’T JUST A LACK OF PREPARATION BUT THE…
“…really chaotic management of time.”
CAST MEMBERS WERE REPORTEDLY ASKED TO SIT ON STANDBY, OFTEN FOR THREE TO FOUR HOURS JUST TO GET CALLED FOR A SMALL AND AWKWARD WALKTHROUGH.
THE SAME CAST MEMBER TOLD ME:
“I was really excited to join a ballet production and I understand the main goal of the company is to accommodate a wide range of people, but it went too far. It made me seriously question whether I wanted to do a production ever again.”
FROM AN AUDIENCE MEMBER’S PERSPECTIVE, THE LACK OF PREPARATION IN THE SHOW WAS NOTICEABLE. HAVING ATTENDED THE EVENT MYSELF, IT WAS EVIDENT THE CHOREOGRAPHY WAS PUT TOGETHER IN A RUSH. THERE WERE LONG SEQUENCES WHERE DANCERS MINGLED IN CIRCLES AND FAKED CONVERSATIONS WHILE JUST ONE OR TWO CAST MEMBERS ACTUALLY DANCED. IN A TYPICAL NUTCRACKER PERFORMANCE, THESE INTERLUDES ARE OFTEN LIMITED TO JUST A FEW SECONDS.
WHEN I SPOKE TO OTHER AUDIENCE MEMBERS, IT’S CLEAR THEY FELT SIMILARLY:
“Quote from Source 2 (Audience) about thoughts on ballet”
“Quote from Source 3 (Audience) about thoughts on ballet”
THE DIRECTORS WERE CLEAR IN THEIR PRE-SHOW SPEECH THAT THEIR RENDITION FEATURED MANY FIRST-TIME BALLET DANCERS. DESPITE SOME HICCUPS, THE QUALITY OF DANCING WAS QUITE HIGH.
ANOTHER BRIGHT SPOT IN THE SHOW’S PRODUCTION WAS THE LIVE ORCHESTRA. WHILE THE GROUP OF PERCUSSIONISTS, BRASS AND WOOD PLAYERS NAILED THEIR NOTES, THEIR LEAD-UP TO THE SHOW WAS NO MORE ENJOYABLE THAN THAT OF THE CAST’S. THAT’S ACCORDING TO AN ORCHESTRA MEMBER, WHO WISHED TO REMAIN ANONYMOUS FOR THE SAME REASONS AS THE LAST INTERVIEWEE.
THOUGH MORE THAN ANY DANCER EARNED, ORCHESTRA MEMBERS EACH RECEIVED JUST 100 DOLLARS FOR THEIR TIME.
THAT SOURCE TOLD ME THE ORCHESTRA’S PRACTICE LIKELY TOTALED 35 HOURS. THAT MEANS THEIR 100 DOLLAR PAYMENTS WOULD’VE AVERAGED OUT TO AROUND 2 DOLLARS AND 36 CENTS PER HOUR. THE SOURCE SAID THEY WERE TOLD THEY’D BE PAID FOR THE PERFORMANCE, BUT WEREN’T TOLD HOW MUCH UNTIL THEY WERE WEEKS INTO REHEARSAL. THEY TOLD ME THAT THEY, ALONG WITH MANY OF THEIR FELLOW ORCHESTRA MEMBERS, WOULDN’T HAVE TAKEN ON THE TIME-CONSUMING ACTIVITY HAD THEY KNOWN ALL THEY WOULD GET WAS 100 DOLLARS.
GRANTED, THE NATURE OF A STUDENT-RUN PRODUCTION IS THAT IT IS LOW-BUDGET. STILL, SOME BAND MEMBERS SAID THEY FEEL LIKE THEIR TIME WAS DISRESPECTED BY THE SHOW’S MANAGERS.
THE SOURCE TOLD ME THE ORCHESTRA WAS ASKED TO
“…keep adding things and then taking away things after practicing on those pieces for a while.”
THEY TOLD ME THEIR EXPERIENCE WAS A BAD ONE AND WOULDN’T DO IT AGAIN. THEY SAID:
“It was so disorganized, and the show’s directors had no respect for us, and they treated everyone like children.”
EIGHT COUNTS’ PRODUCTION OF THE NUTCRACKER SUCCESSFULLY SHINED A LIGHT ON THE ABUNDANT TALENT OF NORTHWESTERN’S ARTISTIC COMMUNITY. THE ISSUE LIES IN THE EXPERIENCES OF THE DANCERS AND MUSICIANS INVOLVED IN THE WHOLE PROCESS.
THE PERFORMERS I SPOKE WITH TOLD ME THEY WANT A MORE TRANSPARENT AND DETAIL-ORIENTED PRODUCTION TEAM IN COMING SHOWS . THEY ALL SAID IN SOME CAPACITY THAT EIGHT COUNTS IS SIMPLY MISSING ACCOUNTABILITY AT THE TOP. THE COMPANY HOPES TO HAVE A SHOT AT REDEMPTION IN THEIR NEXT PRODUCTION, ASSUMING ENOUGH PEOPLE COME BACK TO PARTICIPATE.
FOR WNUR NEWS, I’M JOHN FERRARA.
