The Nutcracker: Tricks and illusions (The Royal Ballet)

A look at some of the special effects secrets from Peter Wright’s magical production of The Nutcracker. Find out more at Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker score was commissioned by the director of the Russian Imperial Theatres, following the resounding success of Sleeping Beauty in 1890. Marius Petipa created the scenario – based on a fairytale by E. T. A. Hoffman – and Lev Ivanov provided the choreography. The Nutcracker was first performed in 1892 at the Mariinsky Th