12 - EASTERN OREGON PARENT - December 2017
Celebrating a decade of dancing “The Nutcracker”
By JENNIFER COLTON
As the Nutcracker comes to life
under Clara’s Christmas tree and
the Sugar Plum Fairy dances across
the stage at the Bob Clapp Theater,
this year marks the 10th anniver-
sary of “The Nutcracker” ballet in
Pendleton. Ticket sales were so
brisk that all shows sold out before
the first performance on Nov. 30.
For the audience, the show
signals the start of the Christmas
season; for the dancers of Pend-
leton Ballet Theatre (PBT), it’s an
emotional culmination of months
of rehearsals and a celebration of
family.
“It’s full of magic,” says director
Julie Sneden Carlson. “It’s a Christ-
mas classic that’s so well loved it
brings a little piece of that magic to
the community.”
Sneden Carlson understands that
magic inside and out. The former
professional ballerina brought bal-
let to Pendleton when her family
moved here. She says she intended
to retire after 25 years of teach-
ing, but saw a need to bring classi-
cal dance to the region. Soon she
was putting on a “Nutcracker Tea
Party,” a narrated performance
focused on the party scene of “The
Nutcracker.” Each year she’s added
more – more pieces, more costum-
ers, more dancers. After a decade,
PBT stages almost the entire two-
act ballet.
“We’ve never gone backward –
every year we keep moving for-
ward,” she says. “What ballet does
for kids is so profound for so many
kids that I just can’t stay away from
it.” PBT teaches ballet techniques,
but its mission is to teach students
how to excel in life by excelling in
dance.
“I have learned much in ballet,
but also in love, friendship and
family,” says 12-year-old RyLee
Demianew. “You don’t just come
to rehearsal to dance. You laugh,
learn, and sometimes you fall – but
you do it as a family. I have learned
that sometimes you need to fall
and then get back up again.”
RyLee will
reprise her role
as Clara this
year. She has
danced with
Sneden Carlson
for nine years,
almost since the
first Nutcracker
performance. Of
the 35 dancers in
“The Nutcrack-
er” this year,
many are also
in their ninth
year, and oth-
ers are counting
seven or eight.
They gather to
rehearse in the
long, narrow
studio on Main
Street, where they talk and laugh
and tease each other like affection-
ate siblings.
For Sammie Mahaffy, ballet has
become a way to stay involved in
dance. A former hip-hop dancer,
she joined ballet because it was
one of a limited dance opportuni-
ties for someone out of school.
“I never would have imagined
when I moved here at 19 that I’d
still be doing this at 27 – and that
I’d feel like I’m better than I’ve
ever been,” she reflects. She loves
seeing everyone grow. “The first
year, Katelyn (Demianew) was in my
arms. Now here we are, and she’s
dancing on her own. It’s really neat
watching them grow up in ballet.”
Another adult performer, Chris
Demianew, does triple duty for
Pendleton Ballet Theatre: he is
on stage as Drosselmeyer, behind
the scenes as stage manager and
always in the role of parent. He says
behind-the-scenes during “The Nut-
cracker” is when
the family comes
together.
“Pendleton is
a small commu-
nity, but every
year we go to
BMCC and the
theater space
is absolutely
packed,” he
says. “There’s
something that
is magic. They
want to fill their
hearts with that
magic. It makes
all the work
worth it.”
Rehearsals for
the show begin
in June. In the
weeks leading up to performances,
the dancers have class twice a
week, plus additional rehearsals.
Some of the dancers travel across
town – others across county lines.
And PBT crosses the years to in-
clude those who have a decade of
experience and those just begin-
ning.
“Not only has Miss Julie taught
me dance – she’s taught me con-
fidence,” says 11-year-old Chloe
Chay, a recent addition. “Coming
here, no matter how big or small or
short or tall or how young or how
old, you can always join. It’s never
too late.”
Ruby Engum agrees. She dances
as the Sugar Plum Fairy this year,
but she did not begin ballet until
age 13. At that time she feared she
might be too old to start. Ruby, who
admits to some confidence issues,
says the experience is a little sur-
real.
“I looked up to the Sugar Plum
Fairy, and now I am it,” she says.
“You get to be someone else that
you maybe couldn’t be.”
Another PBT star, Austin Ford,
15, is dancing the title role of the
Nutcracker. “It’s a fantastic experi-
ence,” he says. “But it is hard to do
all the practicing and the steps and
the memorization – and you have
to make it look easy.”
In Pendleton Ballet Theatre, the
dance does looks easy – though not
always perfect. Dancers continue
to participate, even when life trips
them up. This year, 15-year-old
Brittany Case is wearing a boot over
her foot because of an injury. She
helps with practices from the side-
line – but she’ll be onstage for show
time, in a hooped dress hiding the
cast. Julie Snedson Carlson says it’s
not the first time.
“We’ve had kids on crutches on
stage,” she recalls, with a smile.
“It’s not about being perfect. We
want to make each one of them
shine.” Instead of a competition,
ballet becomes a collaboration and
a mentorship program.
Sneden Carlson concedes they
couldn’t do it without the commit-
ment of so many local families. “It
is a lot of work, but we know why
we do this: It brings the magic, and
it lets people dream.”
________
Jennifer Colton is news director of
KOHU and KQFM, and mother of
three, based in Pendleton.