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Rating: 
Summary: Great performance, even if picture quality is so-so.
Review: Every time I play this DVD the orchestra seems to play better than the previous time. The winds are just amazing. On the other hand, the choreography, by Vasily Vainonen, is excellent, and Lezhnina and Baranov are superb in the main roles.The only drawback of this DVD is its "below average" picture quality, which may be somewhat improved by watching it in "cinema mode" (if bright colors are enhanced, then the figures acquire a ghost or shadow). But the quality of the performance more than makes up for this drawback. Recommended.
Rating: 
Summary: Diminished Expectations
Review: I have been trying to find a suitable production of "The Nutcracker" ballet to entertain my (adult) children when we gather here at our home for the holiday season. The word tradition has crossed my mind. I have a very good home theatre set up.Upon viewing the Kirov version of this ballet, I was both pleased anddisappointed. The sound was okay and the picture quality was so so.What shocked me was the blatent emission of several key scenes from this production.The "growing" Christmas tree, The woman who hid all those children under her extra large dress and the "Sugar Plum Fairy" episode were very annoying.While the two featured artists were quite talented, I think, given all the talent of the Kirov, other dancers should have been featured in more scenes.
Rating:
Summary: Diminished Expectations
Review: I have been trying to find a suitable production of "The Nutcracker" ballet to entertain my (adult) children when we gather here at our home for the holiday season. The word tradition has crossed my mind. I have a very good home theatre set up.Upon viewing the Kirov version of this ballet, I was both pleased anddisappointed. The sound was okay and the picture quality was so so.What shocked me was the blatent emission of several key scenes from this production.The "growing" Christmas tree, The woman who hid all those children under her extra large dress and the "Sugar Plum Fairy" episode were very annoying.While the two featured artists were quite talented, I think, given all the talent of the Kirov, other dancers should have been featured in more scenes.
Rating:
Summary: Diminished Expectations
Review: I have been trying to find a suitable production of "The Nutcracker" ballet to entertain my (adult) children when we gather here at our home for the holiday season. The word tradition has crossed my mind. I have a very good home theatre set up.Upon viewing the Kirov version of this ballet, I was both pleased anddisappointed. The sound was okay and the picture quality was so so.What shocked me was the blatent emission of several key scenes from this production.The "growing" Christmas tree, The woman who hid all those children under her extra large dress and the "Sugar Plum Fairy" episode were very annoying.While the two featured artists were quite talented, I think, given all the talent of the Kirov, other dancers should have been featured in more scenes.
Rating: 
Summary: Vainonen's Nutcracker in a very lavish staging
Review: Vassily Vainonen's Nutcracker choreography was probably as influential in Europe as Balanchines Nutcracker was in the United States. Vainonen omitted the Sugar Plum Fairy altogether and instead made Clara's story a Romantic Awakening. Most European versions of the Nutcracker follow Vainonen's lead, although they may retain the Sugar Plum Faiy. From the Royal Ballet version (available on several videos, the latest with a truly enchanting Alina Cojocaru as Clara) to Grigorivich's dreary Bolshoi production and Nureyev's more surreal one, the Vainonen influence can be found. On the other side of the pond, Baryshnikov's film with Gelsey Kirkland is also based on the Vainonen, although with considerably darker overtones.
The Kirov video is the only tape I know that is actually Vainonen's choreography. Unlike the Bolshoi video with Maximova and Vasiliev, the Kirov's video is blessed with excellent production values. The costumes, sets, and performance are all pretty, sumptuous, and well-organized. I particularly love the Snowflakes scene in the Kirov, with its background of evergreen trees. The Kirov corps is as usual elegant and their use of their upper bodies is a real plus for the ethnic dances in Act 2.
I also like the cast for the Kirov video. A very young, waiflike Larissa Lezhnina is very believable as a teenaged girl. Of the "adult" Clara/Mashas only Gelsey Kirkland and Alina Cojocaru can match Lezhnina's youthful, innocent persona. Merle Park (on the Nureyev video), Ekaterina Maximova (Bolshoi), and Lesley Collier (Royal Ballet) are all way too mature to be believable as a teenager. Viktor Baranov is a very handsome, dashing Prince.
How is the Vainonen choreography? I like it a lot. I think the divertissements are well-choreographed, and the Kirov dances them with the usual elegance and aplomb. I particularly like the Arabian dance in this video. While not as family-friendly as George Balanchine's (no Mother Ginger here!) once you get past the convnetion of adults playing children, I think the choreography is very beautiful, and emphasizes the more romantic aspects of Tchaikovsky's score. It all depends on what you prefer, I guess. A Nutcracker as a child's dream fantasy filled with sweets and fun (Balanchine) or a romantic dream of a teenaged girl (Vainonen)? I like both. Unlike the Baryshnikov video there's no darkness here (the Baryshnikov video suggested romantic feelings between Drosselmeyer and Clara). The Kirov has since abandoned the Vainonen version for a darker Nutcracker so I count myself lucky that this is on videotape.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent traditional Nutcracker
Review: With the complete absence of videos from the major Russian ballet companies after 1992/3, this live recording at the Mariinsky Theatre of Vassili Vainonen's "Nutcracker" as danced by the Kirov Ballet in 1993, has now attained the status of treasurable rarity. Headed by that magnificent little jewel Larissa Lezhnina (long since a leading ballerina with the Dutch National Ballet in Amsterdam) and the charming Viktor Baranov, this recording gives a fair idea of this particular production which remains since its creation in 1938 one of Russia's most beloved "Nutcrackers". Part of Vainonen's lasting appeal is his ability to devise a choreography which superbly matches Tchaikovsky's at times monumental musical inspiration. The masterful Waltz of the Snowflakes, the Waltz of the Flowers, and the final Grand Pas de deux are excellent examples of his art. A remarkable asset of this performance is the presence of the Orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre, conducted by the incomparable Viktor Fedotov, one of the most able ballet conductors of our time. Good video transfer and excellent digital sound.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent traditional Nutcracker
Review: With the complete absence of videos from the major Russian ballet companies after 1992/3, this live recording at the Mariinsky Theatre of Vassili Vainonen's "Nutctracker" as danced by the Kirov Ballet in 1992, has now attained the status of treasurable rarity. Headed by that magnificent little jewel Larissa Lezhnina (long since a leading ballerina with the Dutch National Ballet in Amsterdam) and the charming Viktor Baranov, this recording gives a fair idea of this particular production which remains since its creation in 1938 one of Russia's most beloved "Nutcrackers". Part of Vainonen's lasting appeal is his ability to devise a choreography which superbly matches Tchaikovsky's at times monumental musical inspiration. The masterful Waltz of the Snowflakes, the Waltz of the Flowers, and the final Grand Pas de deux are excellent examples of his art. A remarkable asset of this performance is the presence of the Orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre, conducted by the incomparable Viktor Fedotov, one of the most able ballet conductors of our time. Good video transfer and excellent digital sound.
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