Sunday, December 21st, Frank and I took Alex to a matinee performance of the Nutcracker Ballet. It was held at our neighborhood Livermore theatre and performed by a local dance company.
We decided to try getting tickets to take Alex to this experience just a few days before the performance date. Seats were almost sold out, but I snagged two adjacent seats for Frank and Alex in the very last row and I sat across the aisle, a couples seats away, also in the very last row. As it turns out, a distant overview is great vantage seating for a ballet. A small a cappella group sang a few numbers before the show began. The story behind the Nutcracker ballet was summarized in the program and is included in this blog post.
Understanding of the story is not required to enjoy the music, the dancing, and the colorful costuming. Personally I have humbly felt that the opera and the ballet are above my cultural station in life. I was so wrong. Without a series of conversations or dialogues to get in the way, Alex stayed engaged throughout the entire performance and seemed to really enjoy the it. The music and the motion were constant. So were his smile and clapping and utterances of "yeah!" He also happily clutched at his program to act tactile joy to his listening and watching.
After the show we took some photos in the lobby.
On our way out of the parking garage was a silhouette in lights of a cowboy on a bucking bronco. After all, one of our high school football teams is the Livermore Cowboys. This show was successful enough that we just may do it again next year!
No comments:
Post a Comment