Holiday season is closer than you think. In fact, a Great Falls holiday tradition is already underway. Auditions for the Nutcracker Ballet were held in town, giving local ballet students a chance at landing a spot on one of the biggest stages in town.
The Nutcracker Magical Christmas Ballet hosted auditions in partnership with Great Falls Balco, a local ballet studio. Children ages 6-17 participated for the opportunity to be a part of the production through the productions unique “Dance With Us” program.
The Great Falls Balco Artistic Director, Jenny Hutto said that this is an unique opportunity for her students. “This opportunity is amazing because in Great Falls, it's a smaller community and really we don't get the opportunity to perform on the big stage. We don't have the numbers for it. And so, getting to dance at the Mansfield with professional dancers is a huge, huge opportunity.”
This year’s audition director, Maria Molotsiyan is a company soloist who will also direct the first rehearsals with selected dancers. The Ukrainian dancer explained that she has a lot of excitement being able to work closely with the dancers. “It’s my first time working with the Nutcracker Magical Christmas Ballet and my first time in the United States. The audition is open to all Aria dance students. Children will be cast in many roles.”
Nerves for the audition ran high in the room, but for Kindel DeVries, a dancer in her senior year, she did her best to turn her nerves into excitement. “I’m nervous because I’ve never done something as big as this before, I don’t really know what to expect. But, I’m excited because I love dancing. It’s fun and important to me because i get to express myself both emotionally and physically.”
Her dance director, Jenny added, “Performing as a dancer is that's your soul. It's what you do. It's what you love. And to perform in front of a large audience, is it just it's the best feeling.”
For more information about purchasing tickets and performance dates, click here.
