Dancers from the Manhattan Youth Ballet perform in ‘The Knickerbocker Suite.’
Submitted photo
Dance film to be screened at Circle Center for the Arts
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Have you ever wondered what “The Nutcracker” would be like if it moved away from its traditional old-time house party and land of sweets?
Well, wonder no more. Just visit the Circle Center for the Arts on Thursday, Dec. 1 or Saturday, Dec. 3 and, thanks to ArtNEPA.org, you can watch an onscreen version of “The Knickerbocker Suite,” as performed by The Manhattan Youth Ballet.
“The Knickerbocker Suite” uses Tchaikovsky’s beloved music, and retains the suggestion that everything you see is the dream of a young lady named Clara. But the backdrop is New York City, where holiday shoppers bustle in and out of Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s.
You won’t find Mother Ginger keeping watch over her little dancing Polichinelles here, but you will find the Statue of Liberty presiding over a group of dancing immigrants as they arrive at Ellis Island.
Cockroaches join mice as villains in the battle scene, and if you notice some dancers with fabric wings attached to their arms, they’re portraying another group of city residents — pigeons.
“It’s a very upbeat introduction to the world of dance, more relaxed and contemporary than the traditional setting,” said Daevid Mendivil, who with Colleen Logan is co-chairing the screenings of the dance film. “And, who knows? If a child is introduced to dance they might grow to like it and eventually study dance or art or theater. Even if they don’t become professionals, it will enrich their lives.”
ArtNEPA.org will bring four screenings of “The Knickerbocker Suite” to the Circle Centre for the Arts, rear 130 S. Franklin St. in Wilkes-Barre this week. Admission to the shows at 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. Saturday is $10 for adults and $5 for children.
Admission to a screening today (Dec. 1) at 4 p.m., is free and open to the public, first come, first served. An earlier screening has also been scheduled, solely for a group of children from the YMCA.
“We just want to spread magic, and joy,” Mendivil said.
Part of the joy of “The Knickerbocker Suite” screenings at the Circle Centre will be a sleigh, large enough for visitors to climb in and suitable for photo opps.
“I’m excited to do that myself,” Logan said.
Parking for the Circle Centre for the Arts is available on nearby streets as well as in the lot across from the YMCA on West Northampton Street and in the Bell Furniture parking lot on South Main Street.