Boston Ballet

My sister had recently moved from CALI to chilly Boston for work, and we decided to invest in Christmas holiday tickets to enjoy their newly staged «Nutcracker» after having grown up on this at the Princeton Ballet Company staged at the McCarter Theatre Company as well as the San Francisco Ballet’s versions.
What a delight!
Because we had not been seeing the previous version for 20+ years, we could watch it with fresh eyes and thoroughly enjoy it.

While the Boston Ballet deserves its own 5-​star review, this is for the Adult Open Classes at the Boston Ballet School in the South End. Love the facilities and the professional environment. The pianists are some of the best in the business. The teachers give good corrections and make an effort to change up their barre to keep you feeling challenged as the weeks go on. Someone new might confuse professional with intimidating, but will soon realize that is not the case as the teachers have a great sense of humor.
Some tips
Class Level: if you haven’t taken a class here before, try a class one level UNDER what you think you should be in. I’ve seen more than one adult get in over his/​her head in Elementary thinking it is a class for people with limited training, when in fact there is very little explanation given for each exercise (sometimes it is just verbal instructions or a very quickly marked demonstration). Same goes for intermediate– it moves REALLY fast and assumes significant mastery. If you’re not sure if you belong in Beginner or Elementary, try Christopher Hird’s Beginner/​Elementary Friday night class and then ask him for a recommendation on your class placement (he’s super approachable and the Head of Adult Programming). If you think you belong in intermediate, try Gene Murray’s amazing Tuesday/​Thursday Elementary class first!
Attire: a mix of leotards and tights with shorts, ballet skirts or yoga pants on top. Definitely wear ballet slippers.
On arrival: the woman at the desk often assumes you know where you’re going and which studio is which– make sure you ask! Also the classes fill up quickly (though rarely overcrowded). Arrive at least 15 minutes early or else you will end up on a center barre (which to me, is a scary, scary thought).
Other: bring water! The water fountain isn’t always working and in the spring/​summer months these studios can get HOT.

A bit of a walk from a T stop, but completely worth it when you enter the gorgeous building and find your way to one of the studios for an open adult ballet class.
Real-​life accompanist: priceless. It turns every practice and warmup into a performance.
Personal corrections: invaluable. Instead of a teacher sitting at the front and making general critiques (if any).
Price: $ 18 for 1.5 hours. That’s incredible, when that’s the same as (or less expensive than) a mediocre yoga class in town.
Level: challenging! A wide range of levels can find value and learning in the classes, even the beginner ones.

It was a mandatory field trip at my elementary school to see the nutcracker every year. So when a friend asked if I would attend the Boston production with her, I expected more of the boring production I grew up with. But this was lovely. I was especially impressed with the interpretation of the animal costumes. Brilliant. I wouldn’t do them justice if I tried to explain them. Also the humor element of the boston production was just plain fun. We went to a matinée. As adults, I was pretty sure what we were getting into. Lots of little kids squirming, lots of parents explaining the ballet during the performance, a couple of chair kicks from bored little legs. But seeing a sea of little girls, twirling in the their best party dresses pretending to be dancers… It made Christmas a little more sparkly then when we walked into the performance.

I can only comment on their production of the Nutcracker. Beautiful, diverse dancers and wonderful stage props/​settings. Definitely worth the money to see a Christmas classic! I remember going to the Nutcracker as a kid in SF, and the experience at the Boston Ballet made it all seem just as magical as it once was.

I used to go to every ballet on a student ticket, and continued to go for many years after high school and college. I’ve seen ballet from before and now, during the Nissinen years… while I think I preferred some of the dancers in the pre era (Simon Ball… what a great dancer), i don’t think the past ballets highlighted the company dancers’ strength. And that doesn’t take away the talent and presence of the current company… Boston Ballet dancers have always been technically remarkable and well trained. Boston Ballet gave me exposure to world renowned ballets– my first viewing of all the classics were with Boston Ballet: Sleeping Beauty, Giselle, Don Quixote, many Balanchine works (including Stars & Stripes, and Emeralds), and of course, the Nutcracker. Most recently, I got to see Boston’s interpretation of a ballet I love and have seen by other companies, Coppelia. The ballet was well interpreted, with very difficult sequences of choreography that the dancers handled beautifully and with comedic lightness. Their pointe shoes hardly make any noise or squeaks at all, so impressive. Bravo!
Boston Ballet’s move from the Wang Center to the Opera House was needed, in a time where money for the arts is not plentiful, and where the audiences may not always be as engaged. The Opera House is a beautiful venue to showcase the Boston Ballet (though I dislike the huge size of the balcony, where a seat in the back can seem like a mile away and very disconnected by what is on stage. I think the company has done a good job of attracting the younger demographic, and in their balance of yearly programming between full length story ballets and more modern new works and repertory pieces. While I myself favor the classics in full length, I understand that companies need to have a mix of works, to keep its dancers, teachers and choreographers fresh… I do see a difference in the dance, especially with seeing another city’s ballet company (Atlanta) bogged down with the need to constantly cater to the masses with boring and uninspired dancing.
I’ve also had the pleasure of taking classes at the Boston Ballet school as well… for a little while, I went to drop-​in ballet classes at the Newton campus. Great workout, and great teachers… highly recommended for those looking to improve their ballet skills.
Support the arts!

Amazing job every year at The Nutcracker. Great venue too

Boston Ballet has come a long way in putting modern dance on stage. Last nights All Kylian was fantastic. Especially the first piece Wings of Wax was phenomenal. Misa Kuranaga’s effortlessly appearing flow was riveting.
… and they are so under-​appreciated that there are last minute tickets available. If you like modern dance, you won’t be disappointed.

Granted, I am no ballet expert, but I have been thoroughly impressed with the aptitude and expression in the corps de ballet and the principle dancers, especially to note that of Misa Kuranaga. The first time I saw her on stage was as Juliette for opening night of R&J in 2011 and she has not failed to disappoint the audience since her status as a star for the company. I will miss the talents and dedication of this close knit group when I leave Boston next year.

It’s hard to review because these dancers are obviously super talented and very few people can do what they do.
I came here to watch Romeo and Juliet, and while sure the dancers were great, i was not awed. The sets, and costumes were predictable. No one was really a stand-​out. Sadly there were also quite a few dancers who fell during the performance.
Great experience though and the opera house is beautiful!

This is my favorite place for classes in Boston. Very good and very serious. Keep up the great work!
The performances are pretty good. Sometimes I’m awed, and other times I’m not, but that’s how you know you’re a dance snob from NYC. Whitney Jensen, Jeffrey Cirio, and Keenan Kampa are amazing, as are the principals. Too bad Keenan is leaving soon.

I saw Simply Sublime last weekend and loved it. I managed to go almost 28 years without having seen a ballet, so I wasn’t really sure what to expect, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. The dancers have incredible skill, and I loved the music, the motions, and the colors. Very well done!

I have been looking forward to seeing The Nutcracker for more than a decade. We finally got around to it this year and it was a letdown. On the plus side, the theater is beautiful and the children in the audience were well-​behaved (for the most part). But, the dancers were often out-​of-​sync; the entire first act was lacking in challenging and/​or elegant moves; any of the other little girls could have done a better job than the little girl they cast as Clara. Her smile was fake and she did not show any sense of joy when she danced. I’m glad we saw it. We had a nice time, but the performance was not worth the nearly $ 300 we spent for 2 people to see it.

This is a review for the adult open classes at the Boston location. Fabulous. They provide an opportunity to take class from these professionals, and give a serious ballet class. I majored in dance in college and have been practicing ballet since the age of 4, but there are plently of students who have much less experience, and the classes seem to work well for them too. There is a wide range of classes offered, in both the beginning and intermediate levels, and they have advanced classes daily during the week in the mornings.
The classes are reasonably priced (10 class card = $ 130 and there are better rates for students). This location is a gorgeous building with big open studios, and it’s conveniently located to boot. I am so thrilled that these classes are offered so close to me! Definitely recommend!

We went to Coppelia on Friday night and it was such a lovely show. I was in a bad mood due to the rain and timing and the show really won me over. I love love love the costumes and sets. If you’ve never tried the ballet, you should. You’ll never know if it’ll become a favorite. I definitely recommend trying something other than the Nutcracker. Obviously, the Nutcracker is quintessential, but now that I’ve seen another show, I’m hooked. Students from the Boston Ballet School make the evening memorable plus the Boston Opera House is GORGEOUS. My breath gets taken every time I walk in. The ballet is definitely one of the most dressy shows we’ve been to, so don’t be afraid to wear a cute cocktail.

We were truly captured the Boston Ballet’s Nutcracker! The dancers were remarkable! We also got great prices on our seats about $ 35! We were right by the orchestra pit too! We cannot wait to come back to see another performance here. I do have to mention that in the ladies room there was a lady who worked for the Opera house that was yelling at ladies in line to move to the open bathroom stalls. Luckily she did not yell at me… I just thought it was a bit entertaining…

I have been going to see The Nutcracker (and other BB performances, but Nutcracker is my fave) for the past 11 years. While I thought the quality of the performance started to slip a bit in the past couple of years, they really took care this year to ensure that the performance was fantastic. It was one of the best, if not the best, Nutcracker performances I have seen them do. The costumes, the sets, the dancing, etc were all fabulous, and the little changes that they made throughout were really great. It reminded me of why we decided to make this part of our holiday tradition. It’s awesome.

You simply MUST see The Nutcracker this season! It’s such a great holiday tradition.
As someone who danced ballet for many years, I still love to watch– and the tickets are very affordable for college students. Of course, I am a bit biased as I was really here to see my cousin perform as Fritz, but the company dancers were just spectacular.
When very young children around me can sit through the show quietly in awe, you know that it’s a good ballet. The set design was superb, the Opera House is really a wonderful location, and the live orchestra was excellent. This truly got me into the holiday spirit this year and I cannot wait to go to more ballets in the future.

Ok, so their building is beautiful and typically the accompanist’s are really good. But it is completely hit or miss with the teachers here. I think this place is definitely better for people who take ballet because they like the idea of it and are looking for a light introduction or to just kill some time in the evenings. the classes are very generic and vanilla, which is what you need if you are a beginner. Eventually though you do crave a little bit more variety in the phrasing and the combinations. Don’t expect to have a piece of a variation worked gracefully into the floor exercises, it simply wont happen.

as an ex-​ballerina-​but-​still-​a-​ballet-​snob, i hate to admit that the boston ballet lets me down a little.
remember that girl from center stage whose motto is «oh, i thought there was enough music for a triple, so i did one»? that’s how i feel about professional ballet. i’d much rather be in awe of a dancer’s feats than bored by their technical perfection. isn’t the true purpose of the performing arts to entertain anyway?
i sat in the nosebleed student rush seats for sleeping beauty, and i don’t remember much, but i sat in one of the first rows for the nutcracker and still vividly remember the disappointment. why the 90 degree arabesque? where are the mind-​blowing leaps? why doesn’t the sugar plum pas de deux match the intensity of the music?
the thing that breaks my heart the most is that i’m confident that the dancers are capable of more, but that the choreography they’re given just doesn’t give them the chance to really showcase their talents.
i hate to be the transplant who compares boston to new york, but even on the cheesy macaulay culkin new york city ballet nutcracker from the early 90s that they show on TV every christmas season you can tell that the boston ballet needs to do some serious catching up.
even after all that venting i’ll still support the ballet (and you should too!) — because my disappointment from a technically perfect albeit potentially amazing nutcracker pales in comparison to the news that they were kicked out of their old theater and replaced with the rockettes. really, boston? is this what we’ve come to? the rockettes?!