YourClassical

Minnesota Ballet with the Keweenaw Symphony Orchestra Present The Nutcracker

The Nutcracker, Acts I and II
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Interview: Robert Gardner and Joel Neves
Clara and her Prince
Clara and her Prince from Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker at the Minnesota Ballet.
Minnesota Ballet

Earlier this month, I got the opportunity to get out of the soundproof radio booth that is a classical music host's most familiar and most comfortable home...and what a great opportunity it turned out to be.

Not only did I get to see and hear my first ever production of Tchaikovsky's spectacular ballet The Nutcracker, I also got the chance to talk to two of the people behind the production: Robert Gardner, Artistic Executive Director of the Duluth-based Minnesota Ballet, and Joel Neves, Music Director and conductor of the Keweenaw Symphony Orchestra. Last year, the two decided to collaborate for this year's sold-out production, which took place in Houghton, Michigan at the incredibly beautiful Rosza Center for the Performing Arts on the campus of Michigan Technological University.

The audience who surrounded us during our pre-concert conversation was enthusiastic and excited about the performance — and asked some incredibly discerning questions, too. And then the performance itself — what a joy. It was vibrant and colorful, the dancers and musicians in perfect sync...and truly was a wonderful introduction to the incredible worlds Tchaikovsky creates in his ballets.

Michigan Tech in Houghton, Michigan, sponsors WGGL. The mission of Michigan Tech is to "prepare students to create the future," and it leads the country with the highest percentage of women enrolled in biomedical engineering, according to information compiled by The Whitaker Foundation. Engineering, science, technology, and the business of technology are the main focuses of Michigan Tech.

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