Misty Copeland takes a bow in front of Daniil Simkin after performing in American Ballet Theatre’s “The Nutcracker” at Segerstrom Hall in Costa Mesa on Thursday, Dec. 7, 2017. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Performances of holiday classic “The Nutcracker” will take place in San Pedro and Torrance early next month.
San Pedro City Ballet, a nonprofit founded in 1994 by Cindy and Patrick Bradley, will present its community outreach performances of the holiday tradition from Friday to Sunday, Dec. 5-7, at Dana Middle School in San Pedro, with public performances scheduled for a few days later in Torrance.
Public performances of The Nutcracker will take place at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 12, 2 and 7:30 p.m. Dec. 13, and 2 p.m. Dec. 14 at the James R. Armstrong Theatre, 3330 Civic Center Drive. The performances are made possible with the support of the Torrance Cultural Arts Foundation. Tickets are available now at torrancearts.org.
Nearly 150 dancers — some as young as 4 years old — will take part in this year’s production, with special effects and choreography delivered by the ballet company, which is known for discovering and training Misty Copeland, the recently retired but internationally acclaimed principal dancer for American Ballet Theatre — who once danced in the San Pedro City Ballet’s production of “The Nutcracker” as a young teen.
For more than 30 seasons, San Pedro City Ballet has produced the traditional holiday performance, offering special shows for Los Angeles Unified School District campuses. This year, expanded access through the district’s Cultural Arts Passport program has allowed more than 2,000 LAUSD students to attend “The Nutcracker” at no cost. The performance also marks the culmination of a 10-week in-school dance residency offered through San Pedro City Ballet’s Firebird initiative, which was inspired by Copeland.
Throughout the week, hundreds of local school children will experience “The Nutcracker” — many for the first time — through the outreach program.
“Dance has the extraordinary ability to build confidence from the inside out,” said Artistic Director Cindy Bradley. “When students discover movement, they also discover their own voice. Through our Firebird program, we’ve watched countless young people find passion, discipline and joy — often for the first time. That transformation is why we do this work.”
San Pedro City Ballet‘s performance mission is rooted in “classical traditions while committed to contemporary innovation,” the group said in a press release.
Community outreach performances are made possible with the support of our donors, including the Crail-Johnson Foundation, Dwight Stuart Youth Fund, Henry L. Guenther Foundation, Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn, Councilmember Tim McOsker, Los Angeles County Department of Arts and Culture, City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, and the Port of Los Angeles, among other supporters.