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The premiere of Tchaikovsky\u2019s seminal ballet \u2018The Nutcracker\u2019, on 18th December, 1892, at the Imperial Mariinsky Theatre, Saint Petersburg. It was NOT a hit.\nThe composer, who thought the Alexander Dumas source material was slight and childish, only agreed to write the piece if it was shown in a double-bill with his opera, \u2018Iolanta\u2019. He certainly didn\u2019t want to repeat the critical failure of his earlier work: a certain \u2018Swan Lake\u2019.\nIn this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how a trip to Paris inspired one of ballet\u2019s most famous moments; check out some of the reviews of the day, when body-shaming ballerinas was evidently not discouraged; and explain how Czar Alexander was (literally) catered for in the stage directions\u2026\xa0\nFurther Reading:\n\u2022 "The Nutcracker's" disturbing origin story: Why this was once the world's creepiest ballet\u2019 (Salon, 2014): https://www.salon.com/2014/12/24/the_nutcrackers_disturbing_origin_story_why_this_was_once_the_worlds_creepiest_ballet/\n\u2022 \u2018Sweet holiday staple 'The Nutcracker' may be darker than you think\u2019 (The Washington Post, 2022): https://www.washingtonpost.com/theater-dance/2022/11/25/nutcracker-history-russian-imperialism/\n\u2022 \u2018Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky / Nina Kaptsova - Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy\u2019 (2010): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wz_f9B4pPtg\nThis episode first premiered in 2022, for members of \U0001f334CLUB RETROSPECTORS\U0001f334 - where you can also DITCH THE ADS and get weekly bonus bits, unlock over 70 bits of extra content and support our independent podcast. Join now via Apple Podcasts or Patreon. Thanks!\n\xa0\nWe'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/retrospectors\n\xa0\nThe Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.\nTheme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Ollie Peart.\nCopyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2023.\n\n Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices