I've recently started seeing someone new. He's very thoughtful, attentive, kind, attractive, intelligent, and hilarious...but that's beside the point. He wanted to get me a Christmas present. I told him not to worry about it, but he insisted. That present turned out to be a lovely evening in Houston, including dinner at a surprise location (which turned out to be the Houston Aquarium) and loge box seats at the Houston Ballet's performance of The Nutcracker, which was performed at the Wortham Center. I found out two weeks before we were scheduled to see it so that I could make work arrangements, so that anticipation built up over that time period. I was extremely excited when the day finally arrived.

The fact that I was seeing such a timeless classic with a new interest was exciting, and that he figured out I was into performing arts. I've always appreciated any type of dance performance because I did dance for a brief period of time in late middle school and early high school. The last time I saw The Nutcracker in a ballet performance was back in elementary school, because my 5th grade science teacher's daughter was dancing in it as a sugar plum fairy. Before that, I had the Barbie movie version of it as a child. It's such a timeless classic, so it brought back some nostalgia for me when I saw it again. However, it was a different rendition. It was still a mind-blowing performance.

In this rendition, it features some international influence. After the King Rat is forgiven by Clara, there is the celebration...but not without ambassadors from far and wide. The Spanish, Arabs, Chinese, Russians, Danes, English/British, and the French all join in. They all brought their own special gifts, treats, and dances to the Yuletide celebration. In the show's Playbill, Clara is described as less childlike and more weighty in this rendition. She is given an older sister, who is a teen, so she is less of a child awestruck by Christmas wonderment, the Playbill continues. It surprised me to see these changes, but it made the story more interesting and provided something different.

It is beautiful how art can create stories. It's even more beautiful with how the different types of art (performing arts, visual arts, etc) can interpret stories. There is so much work that goes into interpreting these stories, and you can really see the passion and love that goes with it. The Nutcracker is a Christmas classic and tradition that has always danced in our hearts, and it's amazing to see how artists can conjure up different versions of it.