TTD Ensemble Makes Guest Appearance in The Peanut Cracker Dec. 8

This holiday season, members of the Time to Dance (TTD) Ensemble Dancers with Co-founders Dr. Chervony Belsky, and Lisa Gold, team up with North Shore School of Dance (NSSD) students for “The Peanut Cracker.” These performances, featuring more than 70 dancers from age 3 to 80, will take place at 10:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 8. at the Cressey Center for the Arts at Lake Forest Academy, 1500 W. Kennedy Rd., in Lake Forest, Ill.

Children and adults have been fascinated with the tradition and fantasy of “The Nutcracker” for more than 130 years and it has been nearly a decade since NSSD performed their first “The Peanut Cracker” with dancers from the schools' "pre-" classes for budding dancers age 3-6. This year, dancers age 50 to 80 from the TTD Ensemble will make a guest appearance in the program for “The March of the Toy Soldiers” creating a highly entertaining multi-generational production.

Says Belsky, “All of the TTD dancers are super excited about these performances. ‘The Nutcracker’ has been part of our lives in one way or another for literally decades, and this is a chance to create a whole new memory for the dancers and their families around this holiday treasure.”

This program for this year’s “Peanut Cracker” directed by North Shore School of Dance owner and artistic director Gold includes the "The March of the Toy Soldiers,” a tap number choreographed by TTD instructor Lorraine Chase and performed by TTD Ensemble dancers.

Says Gold, “Lorraine not only choreographed the ‘Toy Soldiers’ piece for this year’s ‘Peanut Cracker’ performances, but her daughter will be one of the TTD Ensemble dancers performing. In addition, one of Lorraine’s great granddaughters is featured in another part of the program. The result: a multi-generational production sure to be inspirational and heartwarming for all.”

NSSD students age 3-6 began rehearsal in October for their performance in “The Peanut Cracker.” To make it possible for all to be featured in the production, the programs for the Dec. 8 10:30 a.m. and noon performances of the “The Peanut Cracker” will generally feature different cast members and numbers. Both, however, will feature "The March of the Toy Soldiers” performed by dancers of the TTD Ensemble, as well as the opening “The Party Begins” featuring dancers from the North Shore Ballet Theatre (NSBT). NSBT presents its traditional staging of “The Nutcracker” Dec. 11 & 12 also at Lake Forest Academy. For more information about NSBT’s “The Nutcracker,” visit northshoredance.com.

Tickets for “The Peanut Cracker” are $18. For tickets visit northshoredance.com.