Santa Cruz Ballet Theatre

As you may know dancers eat a lot. The days can be long when we stage a production or, as we did this season, film a multi-day project. Once the crew and dancers are on location, we are usually there for the duration. Since we filmed the Santa Cruz Nutcracker: Clara’s Dream at multiple iconic locations around Santa Cruz, the logistics were even more challenging. We appreciate the support of community members that supplied food, treats, and funding to create the meals that... fed dancers & crew. Thank you to: Royal Neighbors of America | Difference Maker fund https://www.royalneighbors.org ; D’La Comena Marketing & Catering/ dlacolmenacatering.com ; Mann's Fresh Vegetables ; and Pacific Cookie Company / pacificcookie.com. With your help, we were able to keep our community holiday tradition alive and produce a beautiful film. We also thank catering crew Janice Coury, pictured here, Kirk Halstead, and Holly Rudnick for all your efforts to keep us fed and happy.

We offered free stream of our Nutcracker film Clara’s Dream to local shelters and senior residences, and are pleased that the following organizations took advantage: Housing Matters, Dominican Oaks, Sunshine Villa, Pajaro Valley Shelter Services, CASA of Santa Cruz County, Shared Adventures, Aegis Living and Kinship/Seneca Services. Thanks to Wendy Butler for doing the legwork for the community outreach! (Movie still from Scene 1)

Happy New Year! Thank you Santa Cruz and all our patrons for supporting us through this difficult time. We look forward to performing for you again! Flowers curtsey to the audience in 2011.

Our Artistic Director congratulates the all-alumni, all-female, all-awesome Creative Team of our Nutcracracker movie: Alicia, Georgina and Flora on their amazing work on the film.

There is only one place to see The Santa Cruz Nutcracker! Get out your popcorn & shelter at home. If you didn’t get a chance to watch The Santa Cruz Nutcracker: Clara’ Dream last weekend, or if you would like to watch again, use our Learn More link to stream (Dec 13-Jan10) or purchase DVDs to view from the comfort of your homes. Celebrate with Tidings of Joy, plenty of hot chocolate, & eggnog! https://santa-cruz-ballet-theatre.square.site

The Spanish Chocolate divertissement is extra delicious outside of longtime supporter Donnelly’s Chocolates!

Emily and Emily making the most of the asphalt in front of Donnelly’s Chocolates.

Film Director Georgina checks the footage before moving on to the Spanish shoot.

You thought one director was difficult to deal with, try Two Directors! Alicia directs the filming while SCBT Creative Director Diane directs the dancers. Luckily both sets of eyes intersect! The film experts thought that turning Waltz of the Flowers on the diagonal would be more interesting. Turns out, it is, on all levels! What a challenge for our dancers, who rose to the occasion, as always.

Cool-as-a-cucumber Savanna considers the direction she has just been given on Take 3 of the Snow Scene. While filming The Santa Cruz Nutcracker: Clara’s Dream in outdoor locations, SCBT dancers and crew dealt with a variety of natural elements. It not often that our dancers perform on slightly uneven terrain, but dedication to their training and the deep love for their art prepares them for this challenge.

Otto as the Nutcracker Prince, in the costume designed and built by old friend Theresa Kimbraugh from Sacramento. A direct replica of our toy nutcracker!

Checking to make sure the shots are good. 5 day schedule. 9 locations. While filming the beautiful choreography of The Santa Cruz Nutcracker: Clara’s Dream, LA-based Action Studios crew embraced and captured all the varied beauty our Central Coast locales offer- from the stunning Santa Cruz mountains, where temperatures hit the 90’s, to the ocean where sunlight danced on the waves as the marine layer rolled in temporarily before receding.

Special thanks to The Dream Inn for sponsoring our season! They have been generous supporters for several years now and we were thrilled to film part of our Nutcracker movie Clara’s Dream in such a stunning hotel.

Alicia Houser directed the first two days of filming The Santa Cruz Nutcracker: Clara’s Dream. Here are two behind-the-scene shots of Alicia directing at the Peacock Tree Farm: 1. Clara’s family choosing their Christmas tree 2. Alicia in the background, near members of the Santa Cruz Ballet Orchestra, providing direction to dancers and crew as they set up Snow Scene. ... In addition to the Peacock Tree Farm location- which also included the Battle and Snow scenes, Alicia directed the filming at Bargetto Winery (Waltz of the Flowers), Santa Cruz West Cliff Lighthouse (Chinese divertissement), and Capitola Carousel Taffy & Treats, featuring the Ginger Snaps.

Coming this Holiday Season: The Santa Cruz Nutcracker Clara’s Dream is a beautiful and creative interpretation of our favorite holiday tradition. SCBT is producing the Nutcacker story told through our talented dancers and innovative choreography on film. SCBT uses the many beautiful and iconic locations in Santa Cruz as a backdrop and will feature archival footage of guest stars Melody Mennite and Lucien Postlewaite from our traditional staging. And of course the music is provided by our Nutcracker Orchestra conducted by Maestro Pamela Martin. Stay tuned: We can’t wait to release to the public https://www.santacruzsentinel.com//santa-cruz-ballet-the/

This webinar, which is part of #TheBalletAlliance #festivalmosaic2021, is just one of the many opportunities provided to our dancers. We are looking forward to attending and to rest of the year!

There is no more beautiful location to film our Waltz of the Flowers than Bargetto Winery’s stunning patio!