Nutcracker * *

It became an annual tradition for the last 2 years anyway that Gwyneth's grandmother takes her and a friend to Nutcracker. This year, because she wasn't able to make it I took Gwyneth to the opulent Opera House.

The Tchaikovsky music was delightful, and the costumes were nice, there was a giant ascending Christmas tree and a hot-air balloon that whisks young Clara and her uncle to the Palace of Plum Fairy. There are prancing white reindeer, clowns, a prancing bear and a Rat King.... but I yawned my way through the first act. Gwyneth, who loves ballet and normally sits through almost anything got really bored in second half. She did want to stay till the end and was happily chatting away about the Prince, Clara and the Rat King on our way home. However, after some discussion we decided that she has outgrown it and next year we will look for something else. Maybe it the the known of it, this was her third time seeing it; or she did outgrow it...

Cinderella * * * *

My husband and I have been regularly going to Boston Ballet for the last several years, and often she felt left out, and only once managed to come with me. So this fall for her birthday Gwyneth asked for a subscription to Boston Ballet.

So this year we opened the season with Cinderella.

Whimsical, contemporary with wonderful costumes from around 1920's and with Sergei Prokofiev’s resonant score we both really enjoyed it. Gwyneth's favorite were the "jumping pumpkins", men with pumpkins on their heads jumping in a round circle which represented the clock. And at some point Cinderella dramatically arrived in a pumpkin-carriage...


And it was a resounding success. My five year old was sitting holding her breath most of the time :)