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gram for the ballet that indicated how he envisioned the character and length of each dance . Tchaikovsky then wrote much of the music in just two weeks . Not satisfied with the score , he continued to fiddle with it after its completion . He fashioned an orchestral suite from eight dance numbers and it was with this suite that the work was premiered in St . Petersburg in March 1892 . The ballet itself was launched at the Mariinsky Theater in December . It was the orchestral suite that introduced Americans to the composition when it debuted in the United States , also in 1892 , and so it may have first gained more popularity there as an instrumental work .
Is " The Nutcracker " performed
much in Russia today ?
Buchanan : One of our doctoral candidates in Russian history and music , Rebecca Mitchell , told me that she recently attended a production of the work at St . Petersburg ' s Mariinsky Theater , where it was originally premiered and is still part of the standard repertory , and that she has heard musical excerpts everywhere - on Russian television and even in the grocery store . It also remains a staple of the Moscow Ballet company , which has made the " Great Russian Nutcracker ," with elaborate new set designs , costuming , puppets , and choreography , the centerpiece of its repertory for the international stage since 1993 . The plot is slightly modified
SwOk but the score is Tchaikovsky ' s .
Kansas City Ballet
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