NOW APPEARING WITH THE MOSCOW BALLET
Local dancers to appear in legendary company's 'Nutcracker' production
By ROB PRICE THE COURIER-ADVOCATE

PHOTO BY ROB PRICE Pictured above, dancers Sarah Wright, Kristy Boyd and Kate McKinley practice for their upcoming appearance in the Moscow Ballet's production of 'The Nutcracker,' scheduled forperformance next month at the Clemons Center.

BATH - When the Clemons Center curtain rises next month on the Moscow Ballet's production of Tchaikovsky's "Nutcracker," at least four pairs of dancing legs will be homegrown.

Ten-year-old Sarah Wright, 5-year-old Kristy Boyd and 9- year-old Kate McKinley, all of Bath and students at Extensions Dance Centre on Bath's Liberty Street, will join the internationally renown ballet company in its production of the beloved holiday ballet.

The show is scheduled for a 7:30 p.m. performance on Nov. 15.

Wright and McKinley are long-time ballet students and will dance, respectively, as an angel in Act 2 and as a child at the opening Christmas party in Act 1. Five-year-old Kristy will ride on the sled through the snowflakes as Act 2 opens and will also appear in Uncle Drosselmeyer's workshop, where the mysterious magician fashions the nutcracker toy that turns into a prince during the ballet.

The dancers auditioned for their roles earlier this month in Penn Yan and expect to spend the next six weekends rehearsing in Elmira under the auspices of The Leslie School of Dance.

A fourth Bath dancer, not associated with Extensions, 5- year-old Bethany Smith, also will perform in the ballet.

Wright, Boyd and McKinley last week said they are excited about dancing with Moscow Ballet. "It sure sounds like something exciting," said McKinley, while Wright added she is looking forward to "working with the Russians. ... I hope one day to go to Russia."

Most modern productions of "The Nutcracker" can be traced to a 20th century revival of the ballet by the San Francisco Ballet, but the the ballet originally was based on a 19th century book, "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King," by E.T.A. Hoffman. In 1891, Tchaikovsky was commissioned to write the score for a "Nutcracker" ballet, and the first performance of the ballet was held in 1892 in Russia's Marinsky Theater.

The San Francisco Ballet began performing the ballet in the mid-20th century, with choreographer Lew Christensen designing the dances that would become staples of later productions - such at the Moscow Ballet's upcoming performance at the Clemons Center.