The Hip Hop Nutcracker, a contemporary dance spectacle set to Tchaikovsky’s timeless music, is a holiday mash-up for the entire family. Produced by the New Jersey Performing Arts Center and co-commissioned by United Palace of Cultural Arts, The Hip Hop Nutcracker will stop in 23 cities during its second North American tour. It will stop at Wichita’s Orpheum Theatre on Tues., Dec. 20, 7 p.m.
Directed and choreographed by Jennifer Weber, The Hip Hop Nutcracker is a full-length production performed by a supercharged cast of a dozen all-star dancers, a DJ and a violinist. Through the spells cast by the mysterious Drosselmeyer, Maria-Clara and her prince travel back in time to the moment when her parents first meet in a nightclub. Digital scenery transforms the beloved holiday story set to the streets of New York. The dance work celebrates love, community and the magic of New Year’s Eve.
Special guest MC Kurtis Blow, one of hip hop’s founding fathers, will open the show with a short set before rapping the introduction to The Hip Hop Nutcracker.
The Hip Hop Nutcracker has been called “a truly one-of-a-kind experience, filled with high-powered choreography and a very modern storyline” by “ELLE” magazine, while CBS-TV raved, “The Hip Hop Nutcracker turns Tchaikovsky on his head, in the coolest possible way.”
Tickets are priced at $35 Balcony and $40 Orchestra, and go on sale at 10 a.m. on Fri., Sept. 23.