Just going to “The Nutcracker” is like only listening to Led Zeppelin, or refusing to watch anything but “Game of Thrones.” Full of sparkles and spectacle (and, yes, talent and sophisticated choreography), the grandeur of “The Nutcracker” can make other ballets seem small, slight even. The holiday staple serves up wonder, but it also equates to a summer blockbuster.
In ballet, simple steps executed with artistry and expertise can impress as much as anything. One of the glories of the art form comes in marveling at a delicate, wonderfully straightforward pirouette. A nice example of these subtleties came in the Boston Ballet’s “Coppelia” in March. Now spring brings the perfect balance between bombast and nuance with the Boston company’s “Cinderella,” through June 8 at the Opera House.
If you don’t know the story of “Cinderella,” the fairy tale follows a — oh, come on, you know the plot thanks to Disney or Rodgers & Hammerstein or your childhood bedtime stories. And knowing the plot allows you to focus on the movement, especially that of Seo Hye Han, who played the title role in Friday’s opening performance.
Sir Frederick Ashton choreographed the ballet in 1948 using Sergei Prokofiev’s music for the company that would become the Royal Ballet of England. But it feels as if Ashton laid out the steps with Han in mind. Exemplifying the art at its most delicate, she spent much of her early variations simply sliding across the floor en pointe. It worked, introducing us to the put-upon diamond in the rough just before she blossoms.
Later, during her pas de deux with the Prince (Patric Palkens), the pair continued the theme of slow and deliberate — even the lifts came across as unhurried and restrained. The performance’s biggest oohs and aahs came when Han walked en pointe down a great staircase while looking straight ahead at the awed ballroom (and packed Opera House) and then, during a variation, as she strung together a sublime score of chaines turns (and a few piques).
Instead of finding contrast between big and small, Ashton plays Cinderella’s grace against the bumbling, buffoonish wicked stepsisters (played, as tradition dictates, by male dancers, Roddy Doble and John Lam). The sisters got giggles from the kids and full belly laughs from the adults as they added vaudeville slapstick to the show. They pecked and poked at each other like a pair of Stooges and awkwardly flirted with stuffy, pompous versions of Napoleon and Lord Wellington at the ball. The duo’s clowning provided a welcome counterpoint to elegance and understatement of the leads.
All of this isn’t to say you shouldn’t see “The Nutcracker.” You absolutely should. You should just see “Cinderella” too. And while you’re at it, you should probably pick up tickets to the Boston Ballet’s “Rhapsody” (Thursday through June 9, also at the Opera House) and browse their 2019-20 season at bostonballet.org.
“Cinderella,” now through June 8 at the Opera House. Tickets: $45-$199; bostonoperahouse.com and bostonballet.org.