The Company of Dance Arts prepares its 25th annual production of 'The Nutcracker'

The annual production of The Nutcracker, a tradition of the holiday season, will return to the Count Basie Theatre this December. Led by Artistic Director and founder Jennifer James Church, The Company of Dance Arts, which celebrates its 25th anniversary, will bring the ballet to the stage in four performances — Saturday, Dec. 11 at 2:30pm and 7pm, and Sunday, Dec. 12, also at 2:30pm and 7pm.

Located on Chestnut Street in Red Bank, The Company of Dance Arts was founded in 1985 by Church and has enlisted the talents of repertory choreographers Peter Anastos, Yvonne Lamb Scudiery and Daniel Catanach. Little Silver-Oceanport Patch caught up with Ms. James Church to speak with her about this production, the Company and the arts in general.

Little Silver-Oceanport Patch: What is the preparation time involved with getting The Nutcracker together for the holiday season? How early do rehearsals begin?

Jennifer James Church: We hold auditions open to the community the last weekend in September every year, and then start rehearsals the first weekend in October. The dancers rehearse Saturdays from 3pm to 6pm, and Sundays from 10:30am to 6pm. We have three studios working every hour of that time for ten weeks. The fourth studio is used for parents' meetings, make-up and hair instruction, and costume fittings and refurbishment by our wardrobe mistress and volunteers.

What will the Company be doing to celebrate the 25th Anniversary edition?

Actually, we held a Gala celebration dinner last Saturday at the PNC center. [It was] an amazing evening attended by past and present dancers, teachers, choreographers and Board members — a gathering of one hundred and forty people and quite a celebration!

I saw a production at the Count Basie Theatre two, maybe three, years ago. It was a great production and it, I suspect, was keeping with the traditional structure of the ballet. Has there ever been pressure from outside forces to present a more contemporary interpretation, or is this a piece that audiences expect certain things from, and would object to tinkering with?

We are most fortunate to be able to produce this particular version of the ballet. The choreographer, Peter Anastos, first created his version for professional dancers in the early '80s for the Garden State Ballet, where he was Artistic Director. He used some of our children from Red Bank, hence the connection. We developed a wonderful working relationship and eventually I started producing the ballet for our Company.

Peter's version is slightly different from "the traditional" — in Act I, he sets up the battle scene by Drosselmeyer's creation of a life-size Nutcracker and Mousedoll, who start to scrap at the party in scene one. Scene two brings us Clara's dream with little white mice appearing after midnight, but as Clara's dream becomes a nightmare, they become big grey mice who are eventually joined by the Rat King, who battles with the Nutcracker. [At the start of] Act II, he created bakers who are "making" the sweets that appear later in Act II. Instead of Mother Ginger, he used the fact that the music is a hornpipe and created the crowd pleasing "Salt Water Taffy," the Sailors' Dance.

Could you give me an idea of how the Company came to be?

I created the Company of Dance Arts as a non-profit organization in 1985 with twelve teenage dancers and a very small volunteer Board of Directors. It has grown to its current size of two hundred dancers annually.

What were, and are, the goals of the Company?

Classical ballet training is in a studio for many hours every week, with only the reflection of mirrors and the constant corrections by the teacher. But it is a performing art and needs to come to life in a theatre.

What comprises the repertoire the Company is most known for — are there signature pieces you come back to?

Yes, every holiday season the tradition is The Nutcracker. That's what the audience expects and wants.

Other favorites are Sleeping Beauty and A Midsummer Night's Dream, both choreographed by Peter Anastos, and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, choreographed by Yvonne Lamb Scudiery. Another series I developed that is very popular is Celebrate Dance. In this, we produce many short divertissements by a multitude of guest choreographers in all styles of dance. It makes for a fabulous evening of entertainment and broadens the horizons of the dancers.

Has it been more difficult, with the economy such as it has been, to maintain your organization? How has the recession affected the Company in particular, and the arts in general?

Because we are managed by an all-volunteer Board, it has not been a problem. Their fundraising, donations and ticket sales are our prime support. We also receive grants from the Monmouth County Arts Council and matching grants from corporations. This year, our ticket sales have soared. People are realizing they can get a quality production locally and do not have to go to New York with all the expense that incurs. Our weekday school children performances are sold out and, as of this date, so is the Sunday matinee.

The productions, so I've read, are a mix of professional and student dancers. What does such a mix bring to the performances, and also to the learning process behind the scenes?

I wanted my dancers to understand the rigors of rehearsing, to be able to dance alongside professionals — choreographers, ballet masters and dancers (we bring the men in from companies in New York to partner with the girls), to understand how a production comes to life in a theatre, to develop respect for the invaluable crew, technicians and backstage volunteers who make it all happen and bring a professional production to life. And, not least, to respect and care for valuable sets and handmade costumes, some of which are over thirty years old and handed down from New York City Ballet, not replaceable glitzy things out of a catalogue!

What is next for the Company of Dance Arts?

In spring 2011, we are bringing back another favorite, The Wizard of Oz, created by Yvonne Lamb Scudiery.

Special thanks to Jennifer James Church for speaking with us, as well as Susan Brennan, president of the Company of Dance Arts, and PR Representative Merrill Butler for facilitating this interview.

For more information about Count Basie Theatre, visit: http://www.countbasietheatre.org

To learn more about the Company of Dance Arts, go to: http://www.codanj.com/coda