El trencanous

Badisches Staatsballett Karlsruhe presents its reading of The Nutcracker at the Gran Teatre del Liceu, Tchaikovsky's ballet that follows Clara and her toy soldier in a story set at Christmas.

With music by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and a personal reading by the German company, this production revives one of the most famous ballets in the repertoire. Premiered in Saint Petersburg in 1892, it draws on Hoffmann's tale in Alexandre Dumas's adaptation and blends Christmas fantasy with its heroine's dreams.

The score, with its very colourful orchestration, alternates moments of tenderness with more festive passages. Among its best-known numbers are the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy and the Waltz of the Flowers. The choreography and staging are by Bridget Breiner, the direction by Georg Fritzsch, the set and costume design by Jürgen Franz Kirner and the lighting by Ingo Jooß; the dramaturgy is by Armin Frauenschuh and Florian König.

The musical side is completed by the Orquesta Simfònica del Gran Teatre del Liceu and the Cor de Veus Blanques, in a production by the Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe.