>>PREVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
Alberta Ballet
Runs December 14 to 18
Jubilee Auditorium
Sugar plum fairies and the Land of Sweets are back in Calgary this holiday season after a two-year absence. Alberta Ballet is planning to once again delight Calgarians young and old with its colourful and dynamic production of The Nutcracker, in its popular version choreographed by former artistic director Mikko Nissinen. The company brings the show home to the refurbished Jubilee Auditorium this month following its tour to Victoria, Spokane, Vancouver and Edmonton.
"I think this year’s show is much stronger than what I’ve seen in the past. The company is well-rehearsed and the performance is full of fire," says Daniel Marshalsay.
The Calgary-born dancer was originally cast in several roles, including the Harlequin doll and Russian and Chinese dancers in the Land of Sweets, but a fractured vertebra just prior to touring has forced him to take the walking part of the Grandfather. Marshalsay is making the best of the unexpected casting change.
"The Grandfather is actually a really fun part to play. You can have so much fun with the part because it’s all about character playing," he says.
Marshalsay, now 20, started dancing when he was 11 years old. At the time, the School of Alberta Ballet’s pre-professional program was offering free Saturday ballet classes for boys.
"My sister had been dancing for several years at this point and we eventually ended up in the same classes. A couple years down the road she stopped dancing and I continued. In about my third year of dancing I fell in love with it and made a conscious decision to become a professional dancer," says Marshalsay.
He performed in The Nutcracker for the first time when he was 13 years old, playing one of the soldiers in the battle scene. "It was a minor part for a student, but I had so much fun being onstage with all of the professional dancers," he recalls. He remembers how he used to get their autographs during intermission, and how the aspiring dancers today now come to him for autographs.
The year after his Nutcracker debut, Marshalsay was cast in the student lead role of the Nephew, which he danced for two consecutive years. After graduation, he danced with Ballet Kelowna in 2003 and came back to Calgary the following year for his first professional position with Alberta Ballet.
"This is the only company I aspired to be with while I was training," he says, "and to finally get a job here feels incredibly amazing."
Although Marshalsay’s sister decided not to continue in dance, she hasn’t missed one of her brother’s performances. In fact, she comes with friends and takes delight in showing him off and collecting the programs that feature his name. "My whole family has been so supportive and have come to all of my shows," he says.
Marshalsay, whose professional career is still in its infancy, dreams of dancing the lead role in The Nutcracker as well as performing some of the great classical pas de deux.
"I haven’t yet had the chance to do one of those and I’d like the opportunity to get some good partnering in my repertoire," he says, but admits that it’s a bit more of a challenge because he’s not as tall as some of the other male dancers. "You not only have to be able to dance the part, but you also have to look the part," he notes, explaining how the female dancers are a lot taller when dancing on pointe.
However, he’s had the opportunity to dance several pas de deux with Racheal Prince, the first graduate from the School of Alberta Ballet’s pre-professional program to join the company – and Marshalsay’s girlfriend. "I really like dancing with Racheal because there is such a good connection there. And (Alberta Ballet artistic director) Jean Grand-Maître is quite comfortable in partnering couples for pas de deux because of their chemistry." |
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