#I didn't realize 'Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy' was from this ballet!

[victorluvsalice]

Merry Christmas VanDork!

@vand0rk Your request involved your version of the Van Dort family (Victor, Victoria, and daughter Lily) going to see The Nutcracker ballet, and I have delivered! I still find it amusing that Lily was born the year this premiered. XD Anyway, hope you like!

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“Oh, that was amazing! All the dancers were so graceful and elegant – and the scenery! So beautiful! Oh, Daddy, wasn’t it incredible how they made the Christmas tree grow like that?”

“It was!” Victor agreed, smiling at the bright gleaming joy in his daughter’s eyes. “And so quickly too! I would have thought it would take longer.”

“Me too!” Lily bounced in place, looking rather like she wanted to start pirouetting around the lobby. “And then the battle between the Mouse King and the Nutcracker – oh, I knew that they wouldn’t actually let the Mouse King win, that they couldn’t kill off the title character, but still! I was so nervous for him!”

“I was too – they had quite the fight,” Victoria said with a soft chuckle. “Though, really, what impressed me the most were all those dancers playing mice. I couldn’t believe how smoothly they performed in those costumes! They can’t be light.”

“I imagine they’ve practiced for months and months with them on,” Victor said, trying to picture the scene. “I would have immediately run into a wall the minute I put one on, I’m sure.”

“Oh, Daddy.” Lily gave him a hug. “I’m sure you’d be amazing as a mouse!” She looked up at him, and her brow furrowed. “Granted, you’d be a very tall mouse...”

Victor laughed. “I would, wouldn’t I? I’d tower over all the rest of my fellows. Perhaps I’d be better suited as a tin soldier then.”

“Or the Nutcracker himself, even! He’s one of the main characters – he’s supposed to be tall! And then I could be Clara, and stop the Mouse King from killing you by throwing my shoe!” Lily declared, miming doing just that. “And then you could pick me up and whisk me off into the forest, along the path to – er – where is it they’re going for Act II?”

“The Land of Sweets,” Victoria informed her, checking their programme. “Where they will be met by the Sugar Plum Fairy, and Clara’s bravery in saving the Nutcracker will be honored by a grand dance of sweets from around the world.”

“Ooooh – yes, please, sweep me off to the Land of Sweets,” Lily said with an eager nod.

Victor chuckled. “I’m sure we can make arrangements after the ballet,” he assured her, lightly ruffling her hair. “I’m so glad that you’re enjoying this so much. We were a little worried it wouldn’t be your cup of tea, so to speak.”

“Oh no – it’s absolutely lovely,” Lily said, giving into her impulses and doing a little spin. “I can’t thank you and Mamma enough for bringing me along. Everything is just so – so beautiful, and elegant, and – and I’ve never felt so Christmassy before!”

“The performance does very much suit the season,” Victoria agreed – then let out a little gasp, pointing at the nearby wall. “Oh – speaking of which...”

Victor followed her finger to see a light snow beginning to fall just outside the lobby windows. “Oh! I didn’t think it was supposed to snow tonight,” he said, scratching his head.

“I didn’t either – but it certainly adds to the Christmassy mood, doesn’t it?” Victoria said, giving Lily a smile.

“Definitely!” Lily hurried over to the window for a better look, Victor and Victoria following in her wake. “It’s so light and delicate – perhaps the Sugar Plum Fairy has paid us a visit, sprinkling powdered sugar all over the city.”

“It certainly looks that way,” Victor nodded. “Imagine stepping outside and catching snowflakes on your tongue then.”

Lily beamed at him. “That would be the best,” she agreed, before turning her attention back to the snow. “So pretty...”

Victor grinned at her, then wrapped his arm around Victoria’s shoulders. “What a lovely way to spend the holiday,” he murmured in her ear.

“It is,” she whispered back to him, putting her arm around his middle. “I don’t think I’ve had a Christmas season happier since Lily was born.” She glanced over her shoulder for eavesdroppers, then leaned in. “And I hope a certain someone is enjoying it too.”

Victor opened his mouth to agree – then blinked as movement outside caught his eye. Looking out the window, he thought he saw, just for a moment, the shadow of a blue-tinged figure spinning in the swirl of flakes, arms held wide and head tilted back. He stared for a moment, then smiled and turned back to his wife. “Oh – I think she very much is.”

[fishylife]

I just came back from watching the Nutcracker! It was my first ballet ever.

I was surprised that there were so many kids performing in the show :o Pretty cool.

The first part took place in a barn and that was where Uncle Nikolai gave the nutcracker as a gift to Marie only for her and Misha to fight over it and having it confiscated by their dad.

Ultimate furry ballet by the way. The dancing bears are kind of iconic, we also had the horses, and then the mice towards the end of the first half.

The clothes of the townsfolk were so colourful and cute :3

I have no idea how the kids' beds were moving during the scene where the nutcracker came to life. Remote control??? Idk

Also each of the kids' beds had a kind of chimney attached to it out of which characters popped out and I was like ??? maybe the bed was moved so that it was right over a trap door.

Oh yeah the evil mouse king hehehe

Also live music hell yeah!!!!!! I enjoyed it a lot even though we couldn't see the orchestra because they were in the pit.

I really loved the dance with the snow queen and the two icicles!!!!!!! It was so beautiful.

The snowflakes were pretty too.

INTERMISSION

Sugar plum fairy :3 The people of the magic land were wearing these really extravagant red clothes, it was very striking.

The dances by the chocolate and coffee group were really fun!!!!! I think the coffee group was especially a hit with the audience. I loved how their dance style and their music accompaniment was distinct from the rest of the ballet.

There was some comedic relief with four chefs trying to chase down a chicken for the feast, which was set up by the duke and four other dudes.

OMG ok so there was this part where there was a shepherd and following her were a bunch of kids who were supposed to be sheep. They were all in cute little white outfits and there was one kid in a black outfit and they were SOOOOO CUTE T_T

There was also an adult sheep being chased by a fox who according to the program is supposed to represent shepherd's pie.

I was like *o* when I recognized the Waltz of the Flowers while the bee was dancing. I knew the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy but I didn't realize this other piece was also from the Nutcracker. Anyway, knowing the music makes the show even more enjoyable :3

I really liked the waltz of the flowers though!!! It was so much fun. There was the bee, there were four flowers that was made up of four duos (the ladies were the flowers and the guys were dressed in green as the stems I guess) and then there were eight more flowers. It was very pretty, I really enjoyed that part.

And then the nutcracker fell in love with the sugar plum fairy and they had their dance which was really great and then that took us to the end :3

The Nutcracker was definitely a great "starter" ballet. The story is simple and the set and costumes are so extravagant. The time passed by really quickly :3

[shojizbae]

Music Box

Getting kicked out of your prestigious ballet académie wasn’t nearly as much of a slap in the face as the reason. Mid-class I had a very flare-up with my powers and ended up injuring one of my snooty classmates. I didn’t realize that my school was run by normie supremacists. They didn’t want an outcast student in their school so they cast me out.

It was all too infuriating settling into a new dorm, making friends with my roommate, and dealing with the rumors that come with being the new kid. One of the worst parts is that I couldn’t stand my roommate. She was almost exactly like the girl I had injured. My roommate's name is Veronica. She is a vampire and thinks that because my powers don’t cause any noticeable physical quirks I don’t belong at Nevermore.

She thinks my life is so much easier than hers because of it. And she constantly complains so tonight I decided to let off some steam. After being banished from the académie, I hung up my pointe shoes but I believe it’s time to have a little workout.

I kept one artifact dear to me from the outside world. It was a music box my father had gifted me. It played the tinkly melody of the sugar plum fairy. I was supposed to play her in the upcoming season. It’s October and I have already been through five rounds of auditions and almost a thousand hours of rehearsals. I had this down pat but now my muscles are weak from rest.

I packed a string bag with my point shoes, toe pads, ribbons, and resin. I put my earbuds in and put on an extra layer. I had a relaxing walk down and out of the halls and into the cafeteria. I decided upon that location because at night they flipped the chairs and tucked the tables away. I went into the mess hall and as I had expected there were smooth floors and plenty of open space. There was a low hum from the dishwasher and the school power-saving light bulbs created a gentle ambiance.

I laid down my backpack by the cart where they kept the giant condiment dispensers and as the song switched to some alt rock I started stretching my legs using the cart as a barre. I didn't realize but I stretched my whole body for an hour. I guess I didn't realize time was passing because I was taking time for myself. I felt good for the first time in over 3 months. After that, I glanced over at the tiny polyester bag and kicked my uggs off marching toward it.

I applied little silicon toe protectors and slid on my toe pads before finally squeezing my feet into the damned silk shoes. It felt overwhelmingly familiar, so when I tied my ribbons on and stood up I nearly cried. I took a step and fell right on my ass so I broke out the resin and stomped around and when I rolled en pointe again I felt a lot more stable.

I continued to dance until my muscles felt warm. Finally, I went back into my bag and fished out my music box. It was gorgeous and ornate. It was carved out of mahogany and had pewter hardware that had oxidized to a lovely charcoal shade. On the inside was an elegant porcelain sculpted ballerina with a mesh tutu. I cranked the small dial until the tinkling tune of the Sugar Plum Fairy. I went slowly and failed to keep up with the speed but the trick with music boxes is that they force you to never give up. You must complete the dance or the sound of failure will jingle away.

I let the box tinkle away as I force my body through repetitions of the steps. 1 2 3-1 2 3- 1 2 3! Up and back twist! Tuck your ribs (Y/n). BE more graceful make your fingertips look like flower petals. Point your goddamn toes! I kept repeating things my teachers had kept squawking at me. My technique was sloppy at best. Eventually, My legs hit the right amount of tired where we slipped into muscle memory. The mind and the body have a special connection and when they synch I call it 'the zone'.

The zone is a wonderful place to be. It's a place I wish to live in, a dimension enveloped within this one. But hidden within the crevices of chaos it lies. It's like traveling through a crowded dusty bazaar and you bypass all the piles of spices and the loud haggling. Then you find the section where women sell finely embroidered fabric and you're just walking through miles of silk that muffles all the sound. I felt like I was fuete-ing in the center of that stall. It's like dancing underwater but I don't need air and I'm weightless.

The tricky part of the zone is that when you get lost in it, you lose track of everyone else in the bazaar. The scariest part is when the busker stops playing music, and the hagglers key in for a sweet deal.

"Wow, you're incredible!" The mear shock sent me falling on my ass. At the entrance to the cafeteria was Xavier Thorpe. I have a handful of classes with him and word spread quickly in this tiny isolated drama breeding ground. I lay flat on the ground like a starfish panting like a dog that just got shot. "Oh shit!"

I didn't see him, but I heard him pad toward me his footsteps were anxious. He walked close to me and knelt down next to my ear. I watched his head come into view. His face was concerned, very concerned his eyebrows were drawn inwards and he looked breathless.

"Are you all right?" he reached for the hand resting on my stomach. His hands were warm and kind of sweaty and when I interlocked my fingers with him there was a dry patch on his thumb. His grip was strong and he nearly catapulted me forward when he pulled me up. "Did you hit your head?"

"No, I've fallen way harder than that. Uh, I've been rude, my name is (Y/n)-"

"(L/n). Yeah, We fenced together a few times and you totally destroyed me in our Pride and Prejudice debate. I guess I'm seeing how you got so agile, you're an incredible dancer." He helped me into a standing position and I walked us over to the condiments stand.

"Well that's just because you don't dance, honestly If you saw me months ago I could have really knocked a paintbrush out of your man bun." I stuck my face in his face like a toddler.

"Really? What happened in the recent months that you had a decline?"

I slumped against the wall "I got kicked out of my school for being 'gifted'" I held up facetious finger quotes and gave a wry chuckle.

"What! They kicked you out for being too good?"

"No, They kicked me out because I nearly killed the best dancer in my class."

"What? I require some explanation."

"Well, I'm going to need you to crank that dial 5 times" As I walked away I pointed at my music box "Oh, and if you break that, I'll get kicked out of this school too." He laughed at me and reached for the delicate wooden box. It looked so dainty and misplaced in his hands. I watched his muscled fingers grip the brass dial and crank it until the harmonious symphony played. It seemed like this time I was able to dive into the zone.

"I've always known I was gifted." I started the dance "I've been good at whatever I do. Seeing that talent my mom put me in ballet, and I picked it up instantly." I began a series of turns "I was always so good at acting like I fit in too. I come from a long line of pure bread normies, but my mom. My mom is different, she dated an outcast and had me out of wedlock. Which is inexcusable where we come from." I corrected my posture.

"I was led to believe that I was purebred, my mom's family was. I had been verbally assaulted by this girl- Brittany so many times. I was at the peak of my anger we were doing a mass audition I was going to be the sugar plum fairy! But that bitch kept stepping on my toes-literally. I guess my emotions triggered my powers-I made a force field so strong that when she hit it she dislocated her T-5 and tore her ACL. After they kicked me out I stopped dancing. I was having an identity crisis and I thought that if I danced I would use them and hurt someone." The song came toward its end and I started the final sequence.

"But, dancing, with you here, I feel completely calm, like I'm not going to hurt you." I landed right in front of his face and he latched his hands onto my hips for support.

"Woah. I wouldn't call that masterpiece sloppy. You looked beautiful."

"Thank you, mysterious gorgeous art boy. At least that's how you've been described to me."

"Mysterious and gorgeous? Are you aware that you're describing yourself?" Woah, no boy has ever talked to me like that before. How am I supposed to respond to that? I just giggled I didn't know what else I could say. I grabbed his elbows and caressed them.

"You know for a painter you sure do have a way with words." Smooth you saved it!

"Oh really? How about these words. Would you like to go on a date with me? Actually, let me try that one more time. I'm going to set up a romantic picnic in my art studio and play the movie Five Feet Apart at seven pm on Friday. Whether or not you join me is all up to you."

"Five Feet Apart? That is romantic but I don't want to be bawling my eyes out on my first date."

"That's why I'm going to watch Elf after."

"But it's not Christmas?"

"Who says you can't watch Christmas movies in march? you're dancing the Nutcracker."

"That's fair, I'll see you at 6:45."