Christmas in the ballet world means "The Nutcracker," and fans in Japan can take their pick from numerous productions of this mistle-toed magic originally choreographed by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov and premiered at the Marinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg on Dec. 18, 1892, with music by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.
Set on Christmas Eve, the storyline of "The Nutcracker" follows an adaptation by French author Alexandre Dumas of "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King," a novella by the multitalented German Romantic E.T.A. Hoffmann (1776-1822), and the work is renowned for appealing to ballet newcomers and veterans alike.
In 1982, Tokyo-based Matsuyama Ballet was the first company in Japan to stage "The Nutcracker," and they've continued the holiday tradition ever since. From the outset, too, whatever her other commitments worldwide, the renowned ballerina Yoko Morishita, who joined the company in 1971, has been part of that tradition. That's over 400 times dreaming with sugar-plum fairies, facing down the Mouse King and marveling over the joyous appearance of a troupe of Russian dancers.