The popularity of The Nutcracker characters has long surpassed the territory of ballet, but did you know why they are so well-known and well-received? What is the story behind them?
Today, let’s take a look back at this masterpiece and spend another minute enjoying the meaning and the artistry of The Nutcracker.
Table of Contents
Principal Characters in Nutcracker
Clara & Her Family
In the original story “The Nutcracker and The Mouse King” by E.T.A. Hoffman, the main character is Marie and her doll named Clara. Nonetheless, Clara became the heroine in the ballet productions.
The Nutcracker doll was given to Clara by Drosselmeyer and the adventure began as the doll came to life.
The family members of Clara who are consistently featured in all productions include her parents and her brother. The mischievous sibling named Fritz was the one breaking the Nutcracker doll in the beginning out of envy.
Meanwhile, the family in the literature work is extremely void of love. They neither console the little girl when she gets hurt nor listen to her stories.
Instead, after she told them about her dreams, they forbade her from bringing it up again.
Drosselmeyer
Drosselmeyer is generally written as Clara’s godfather – a magician and a talented toy maker. His tricks were the heart of the party, and his intricate dolls got the children excited.
The Nutcracker doll was his gift to Clara and he was very agile to fix the toy after Fritz broke it.
In some productions, Drosselmeyer was shown clearly as the magic user who brought the Nutcracker to life or sent the little army to the Kingdom of Sweets.
However, in the original story, he told the heroine that the nutcracker was his nephew.
The Nutcracker
The Nutcracker is the lovely doll that Drosselmeyer gave to Clara.
At midnight, with Clara’s witness, he led the gingerbread men and the tin soldiers in a battle against the Rat King and transformed into a prince after achieving victory.
The story by Hoffman dug deeper into the prince’s past and explained his nutcracker form more clearly.
There was a princess cursed by the Rat King’s mother to be eternally ugly unless a handsome man was willing to find the toughest nut, use his teeth to crack it, and offer the kernel to her.
The king promised to let his daughter marry her savior.
Drosselmeyer’s nephew succeeded, but instead of living happily ever after, he had to endure the curse and became the nutcracker in the story. Unable to accept his look, the princess asked the king to banish him.
The Rat King
The Rat King is the main antagonist of The Nutcracker. He wore a crown and led a formidable army of mice against the prince and his soldiers.
The literature also revealed more about this character and allowed us to know his mother, the previous queen of the rats, was the one who cast the horrible curse on the princess and the young man trying to save her.
Drosselmeyer stepped on her, hence the Rat King swore to take his revenge.
The Sugar Plum Fairy & her Cavalier
They are the protectors of the Land of Sweets when the prince is absent.
After knowing Clara had saved the prince, they immediately started harboring good feelings for her and hosted a party that she would never forget.
Check more: 15 Best Ballet Companies In The World
The Story Of Nutcracker
The Nutcracker story had minor changes across its variations, yet none of them broke the basic outline with two main acts of the original story.
For example, the name of the heroine, as I mentioned, could be Marie or Clara, but Clara is more commonly seen.
The distribution of scenes also varied based on the producer’s artistic idea and concept.
Prologue
The story takes us to the 1820s in Germany. A small town was brimming with festive spirit as Christmas was around the corner.
Drosselmeyer, a seemingly mysterious man, performed in the Children’s Street Theatre before leaving for the party with the Stahlbaum family.
Most productions focus on the first act right away.
Act I
The Stahlbaum House
On Christmas Eve, the little town was busy with the last-minute preparations for Christmas, and the Stahlbaum House was no exception.
Mr. & Mrs. Stahlbaum were hosting a party for family and friends and decorating the tree was the last task before the children joined them.
The party was filled with excitement, especially with the dances by daughter Clara and her friends from the local ballet school.
When Drosselmeyer arrived, he immediately became the soul of the party with his magic tricks and lively dolls.
The children were visibly upset when they had to bid the dolls goodbye. However, although Drosselmeyer refused to give Clara his dolls, he gave her a nutcracker made of wood instead.
Jealous and slighted, Clara’s brother Fritz threw a fit and the doll ended up broken on the floor. It saddened Clara tremendously, but Drosselmeyer managed to cheer her up by repairing the doll.
The party ended when it was deemed bedtime for the children. Clara carefully placed the nutcracker away before retreating to bed, but sleep didn’t find her easily.
The Battle
Still exhilarated from the party and excited to see the Nutcracker doll again, Clara sneaked out of her bedroom and went to find the doll. When the clock indicated midnight, a strange, magical scene was slowly unraveling.
The room seemed to have grown in size, occupied by a horde of rats. Under the Rat King’s command, they started to chase and attack Clara.
Without further delay, the Nutcracker doll also came to life and protected the little girl.
Tin soldiers and gingerbread men were soon to join forces with the Nutcracker, while the dolls served as doctors and nurses who helped the wounded away from the battle.
The rats were slowly dominating the fight, but Clara distracted the Rat King in time for the nutcracker to land the final strike and obtain victory.
The Pine Forest
After the rat retreated, the nutcracker collapsed in exhaustion. Clara embraced him and he slowly regained consciousness, simultaneously transforming into a prince.
In gratitude, the prince took Clara to a forest basking in the moonlight. They danced together with the snowflake maiden before the winds took them to the prince’s kingdom.
Act II
The destination of the journey was the Land of Sweets, where the Sugar Plum Fairy ruled on behalf of the prince.
After the prince recounted the dangerous situation he was in and how Clara saved his life, Clara became the heroine of the kingdom. And, a grand celebration was immediately organized for her.
Every kind of delicacy from all over the world could be found at the party, and they joined the victory dance as living creatures.
A string of flowers contributed to the feast with a waltz, while Mother Ginger let her Polichinelles children slide out of her hoop skirt to have fun. The night then concluded with a duo dance from the Sugar Plum Fairy and the Cavalier.
Finally, the prince bowed to Clara and the fairy kissed Clara goodbye before sending her off on a sleigh drawn by the most beautiful reindeers.
The Ending
The ending of The Nutcracker is written and staged differently between ballet productions.
With the Boston Ballet Company and the Northern Ballet Company, the celebration came to an end and Clara found herself coddled in her father’s arms.
She looked everywhere in the room for the prince and the majestic beings she had met, and tried to explain everything.
Was everything a dream? As Clara returned to bed, her peripheral vision caught the Nutcracker and Drosselmeyer.
Other versions featured Clara leaving the wonderland and going home with the spirits of Christmas burning stronger than ever in her heart.
Conclusion
Classical ballet has withstood the test of time and become an indispensable part of the history of art as well as modern life.
There are many great stories and productions that the next generations will continue to muse about and dwell upon, and The Nutcracker’s characters and storyline are certainly one of them.
Have you ever watched any production of it in the theater and what do you think? Don’t hesitate to share your experience with me!