The Sea Captain's Nutcracker
Welcome to The Sea Captain’s Nutcracker, a Cape Cod holiday classic production held every other year at The Tilden Arts Center on the Cape Cod Community College campus in Barnstable, Ma. Voted "Best Local Event on Cape Cod" in 2024. The next Sea Captain's Nutcracker will be in November 2025.
Directed by Laura Sciortino, the Artistic Director of Turning Pointe Dance Studio in Falmouth, the production includes captivating choreography through a collaboration of professional and world renowned dancers including Laura Sciortino, Catherine Batcheller, Joseph Cipolla, and Yves de Bouteiller. Original set and costume designs are by London stage designer Jean Mark Puissant, with new and exciting costumes and sets added each year through a variety of local and global talents and efforts.
This production is an innovative version of the classic holiday favorite. Although the ballet is set to Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker score, our show begins with the sounds of John Lennon’s So This is Christmas. Set in a Chatham Sea Captain’s home in the mid-1800s, the script, written by local authors Donna Smith and Anne LeClair, takes the audience on an enchanting journey through local history and folklore invoking the elements of the natural environs of Cape Cod. The battle scene takes place aboard a ship as it is attacked by mooncussers off the coast of Eastham as a swift and violent storm off Monomoy Point threatens the voyage. The salty old Sea Captain replaces the traditional Drosselmeyer character. Having sailed the high seas, he returns home to Chatham bearing exotic gifts for Clara.
You will be charmed by the Waltz of the Sea Grass and thrilled by the Dance of the Icy Winds. This lovely production is an excellent way to kick off your holiday season and is perfect for all ages.