It’s the season for Indiana University Ballet’s annual production of The Nutcracker. The magical performances took place this past weekend—Thursday night until Sunday afternoon—at the Musical Arts Center on IU’s campus. Several South students had been working hard to prepare for these shows, which follow the classic story of Clara and her nutcracker.
These performers include sophomore Grace May and freshmen David Bauman and Madeline Elkins.
Bauman performed as an officer and had been preparing since the middle of October. The rehearsals for David were “very chill and laid back, [and] the teachers [gave] us a lot of freedom,” Bauman said.
However, Elkins had a different experience in rehearsals, describing them as “demanding, but all worth it.” . . She performed as a mouse, officer and trepak.
May added some insight on the week’s dress rehearsal and performance schedule. “On typical days we [were] at rehearsal from 2:30 p.m. to 10 p.m., but the actual dress rehearsal [was] from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.,” May said. . She performed as a trepak attendant and officer for every performance.
May said that she gets “to be immersed in something that I love and enjoy so much, so it’s great getting to dedicate my whole day to it.”
Juggling heavy homework loads and intense practice schedules were also a huge part of being in The Nutcracker for these students. “[It’s] difficult, but [it’s] all worth it once [I’m] on stage,” Elkins said.
