How 5 dancers share this iconic role in Louisville Ballet's 'The Nutcracker'
Marie spends nearly the entire two hours of the "Brown-Forman Nutcracker Ballet" onstage.
She's the character who leads the audience through a magical dream, and they see the wonder of Christmas through her eyes.
But what they likely don't see is there is often more than one Marie hidden among the scenes.
You might catch a glimpse of Marie as a guest at the party or you may spot her as a snowflake in the Land of Snow. Marie is a flower in the Waltz of the Flowers and a Spanish Chocolate in the Land of the Sugar Plum Fairy.
In Louisville Ballet’s production of the iconic Christmas ballet, five women play the part of Marie. Her character never changes during the show, but the role is so physically demanding, that five dancers rotate with each performance. The women dance with five different Nutcrackers, and off stage, they balance five different lives with personal experiences that influence that child-like joy in their own Marie.
Four days before opening night, I had the privilege of going beyond Marie’s dream and behind the scenes to meet all five of them: Leigh Anne Albrechta, Amber Wickey, Caitlin Kowalski, Emmarose Atwood and Anna Ford.
Each dancer has her own individual interpretation of Marie, explained Robert Curran, the artistic and executive director of the Louisville Ballet, and really that individuality is what gives life to any role in ballet.
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Watching the "Brown-Forman Nutcracker" year after year isn't the same as popping in a worn copy of "It’s a Wonderful Life" or "White Christmas."
The show evolves around the experiences the Maries live every day both on and off the stage.
"That is the beauty of the art form," Curran said, of ballet. "No two performances are the same, ever."
A foundation for Christmas magic at 'Brown-Forman The Nutcracker'
Before they were performers, all five Maries were little girls who celebrated Christmas with their families.
Albrechta’s mother put on an elegant Christmas in their historic home that has flickers of familiarity with what Marie enjoys onstage in the party scene.
Like a lot of dancers, Wickey has joyful memories of attending "The Nutcracker" ballet with her mother and grandmother, and that’s something she carries with her every time she puts on the costume.
"To know that you're creating it for someone else is really, really special," she told me. "I know there are many, many people that were just like me out there in the audience."
But the Maries' foundation for Christmas magic is built on so much more than the dance itself.
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Atwood was afraid of Santa Claus, and she was adamant that she didn’t want him in her house. So when she was young, her parents moved her presents onto the front porch, so she wouldn’t have to worry about Santa piling them under the Christmas tree.
When Kowalski thinks of the holidays, she remembers all the baking her mother used to do. And for Ford, the magic always felt real at the church service she attended with her family on Christmas Eve night.
Keeping that spirit alive can be tough amid the rehearsal and performance schedule that dominates the Maries’ routines in the last two months of the year. One dancer makes it a point to listen to Christmas music that’s not "The Nutcracker" score, and another puts up a Christmas tree in her room. In general, though, the holidays are on hold for all of them until the final round of applause on Dec. 23. Any spare time they have is largely filled with rest, massages, ice baths, and physical therapy.
That doesn’t leave a lot of room for keeping up with old traditions or even embracing new ones.
How playing the childlike Marie in 'Brown-Forman The Nutcracker' is a sisterhood
Of the five Maries, Albrechta is the most senior and most recognizable ― this is her seventh year dancing the part. She's the Marie who appears in all the promotional materials. She’s the one with a youthful ribbon tied in her hair, earnestly cradling the Nutcracker on the ballet's website.
She knows Marie, and that's calming as she goes into production.
But the rehearsals actually become more difficult with each passing year, she told me. During the performance, the costumes and the thrill of the audience help keep her in character, but in the studio, she is conscious that even though she's matured and become a better dancer, Marie must stay childlike, giddy as youthful as she was last Christmas.
"Obviously, as a human, I'm maturing, and so you almost have to work a little backward,” she told me. "You have to still find yourself in that younger role, knowing that you have so much more knowledge and strength and confidence — but she is still Marie."
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That’s not a responsibility she takes lightly, either. "The Nutcracker" has become a Christmas tradition for so many families. Albrechta believes when you’re in the audience, no matter how old you are, or how much you’ve matured, or even where you are in the world, the music and the ballet can help you remember the small, simple things that enamored you as a child.
While the dancers all play the same role, the Maries say they don't compete with each other. It's a sisterhood, and it takes all five to successfully pull off the 13 shows that make up the run.
This is the first year Kowalski is dancing the part, and she's grateful there are so many women in the company who have played Marie before. The Snow Pas de Deux Marie performs near the end of the second act requires incredible technical skill, musicality, and acting ability. While the set transforms from the house's interior into a beautiful, open frozen landscape, the Nutcracker Prince and Marie must dance as though they're skating across it. They must act like they are two young people falling in love. They leap, and then Prince lifts Marie as they dash off and then back on stage between the Snowflake dancers.
Even with the complexity of that in mind, the Maries say one of the most difficult parts of the role is staying still watching with wonder as the dream unfolds, and reacting just enough to appear amazed and engaged.
They have to channel their own experiences to make the audience believe what is happening on stage. That means each Marie must look at the annoying little brother, who steals the Nutcracker at the beginning of the show, the same way that they'd look at their own sibling. When Marie believes the Nutcracker has died after battling the Rat King, the dancer must cry as though she’s lost someone she loves deeply.
"Marie is the one that tells the story," Wickey said. "You're following her through the whole journey of the ballet. So the work is really in finding how to make everything you do really authentic."
If they don't feel that magic, the audience won't either.
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What the Maries from 'Brown-Forman The Nutcracker' really want for Christmas
Before I said goodbye to each of them, I wanted to know where they find the most magic at Christmas.
What, if anything, would mean as much to them as it did for Marie to unwrap that Nutcracker from her mysterious godfather?
After learning how different the dancers are, I never expected them to tell me essentially the same thing.
Wickey's brother is coming home from Greece, and she hasn't seen him in a very long time. She's eager to spend the holidays with him. Ford hopes she can spend time with her family over the holidays because the pandemic has kept her from doing that for the past couple of years. Kowalski is eager for a quiet night with her husband, her two cats and her dog.
Atwood and her fiancé are able to see both sides of her family this year, and that’s an unusual blessing.
All Albrechta really wants for Christmas is to be with her nephews in Colorado.
Over the holidays, all five dancers are part of a genuine Christmas fairytale on the stage. They don't just have a front-row seat to the ultimate Christmas gift — they are living it.
Even with all that in mind, the magic the Maries are all hoping for is really just more time with the people they love.
Features columnist Maggie Menderski writes about what makes Louisville, Southern Indiana and Kentucky unique, wonderful, and occasionally, a little weird. If you've got something in your family, your town or even your closet that fits that description — she wants to hear from you. Say hello at mmenderski@courier-journal.com or 502-582-4053.
'The Brown-Forman Nutcracker'
WHAT: This Louisville Ballet holiday classic returns to the stage, bringing back Sugar Plum Fairy magic to delight audiences of all ages.
CREDITS: Choreography by Val Caniparoli, Music by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
WHERE: Whitney Hall, Kentucky Center, 501 W. Main St.
WHEN: Now through Dec. 23
TICKETS: Subscriptions for the 2022-23 season and single tickets for many of the shows, including "The Brown-Forman Nutcracker," are available now on the Louisville Ballet website or by calling 502-583-2623.
Meet the women playing Marie in 'Brown-Forman The Nutcracker'
Leigh Anne Albrechta
Other 2022 Nutcracker roles: Frau Vol Stahlbaum (Marie's mother), Arabian Coffee, The Rose (Dew Drop Fairy in other productions), and The Sugar Plum Fairy
A proud native of Fremont, Ohio, Leigh Anne Albrechta started her ballet training at The Fremont Ballet School, Ballet Theatre of Toledo, and later studied at The Nutmeg Conservatory for the Arts. Upon graduating, she danced with Charlotte Ballet for two years as a trainee and apprentice, earning the opportunity to work with Jean-Pierre Bonnefoux, Patricia McBride, and Dwight Rhoden. In 2009, Albrechta joined Louisville Ballet as a trainee and was hired into the company the following season. In her time with Louisville Ballet, she has enjoyed performing a range of classical and contemporary roles. Highlight performances include Juliet in Adam Hougland’s "Romeo + Juliet," Aurora in Adam Hougland’s "Sleeping Beauty," Valencienne in Ronald Hynd‘s "The Merry Widow," Sugar Plum Fairy, Rose, and Marie in Val Caniparoli’s "The Brown-Forman Nutcracker," and Andrea Schermoly’s "Rite of Spring." She has also performed principal roles in Balanchine’s "Serenade," "Emeralds," and "Kammermusik No. 2." While at Louisville Ballet, she has been featured in works by Lucas Jervies, Andrea Schermoly, Tim Harbour, Artistic Director Robert Curran, and previous Artistic Directors Bruce Simpson and Alun Jones. In the summer of 2022, Albrechta was selected to perform in the Moving Arts Company alongside dancers from Kansas City Ballet and Cincinnati Ballet under the artistic direction of Cervilio Amador and Logan Pachciarz.
Amber Wickey
Other 2022 Nutcracker roles: Party Guest, Snowflake, French Pastille, Flower (Waltz of the Flowers)
Amber Wickey is originally from Tenafly, New Jersey, where she began her training at Nunnbetter Dance Theater under the direction of Leath Nunn. She graduated from Butler University in 2020 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Dance Pedagogy. After dancing with the Louisville Ballet Studio Company for two years, she joined the Company in 2022. During her time in the Studio Company, she enjoyed performing roles alongside the Company in its mainstage productions, including the pas de trois in George Balanchine’s "Emeralds," a soloist in Dysart Award winner Anne Jung’s "#fourwithsix," and Confidence Fairy in Adam Hougland’s "Sleeping Beauty." Wickey is excited to continue bringing dance to the Louisville community.
Caitlin Kowalski
Other 2022 Nutcracker roles: Party Guest, Snowflake, French Pastille, Flower (Waltz of the Flowers), Spanish Chocolate
Caitlin Kowalski started dancing in Radcliff, Kentucky. She was inspired by her teachers, who were Louisville Ballet alumni, and attended the Louisville Ballet summer intensive in 2014. She attended the Kentucky Governor’s School for the Arts in 2016 as a dance major, and then joined De La Dance Center in Cincinnati as a trainee. In 2017 she returned to Kentucky as part of Louisville Ballet’s trainee program, now known as Studio Company, and eventually was invited to the Louisville Ballet Company in 2021.
Emmarose Atwood
Other 2022 Nutcracker roles: Party Guest, Snowflake, French Pastille
Born in Guangzhou, China and raised in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, Emmarose Atwood trained at Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet for 15 years under Marcia Dale Weary and other CPYB faculty. In 2016, she joined Louisville Ballet as a trainee. She joined Louisville Ballet as a Company Dancer in 2018.
During her time with the Company, she has had the opportunity to perform roles in George Balanchine’s "Emeralds," "Serenade," "Theme and Variations," "Divertimento No. 15," and "Rubies;" Asaf Messerer’s "Spring Waters;" Robert Curran’s "Swan Lake;" Alun Jones’ "Cinderella;" Val Caniparoli’s "The Brown-Forman Nutcracker;" Andrea Schermoly’s "At High" and "Rite of Spring;" Daniel Riley’s "Tonal;" Lucas Jervies’ "Human Abstract" (2019); Tim Harbour’s "Models;" Stanton Welch’s "Velocity;" and Adam Hoagland’s "Sleeping Beauty." She was also featured in Peasant Pas in "Giselle" and Marie in "The Brown-Forman Nutcracker."
Atwood is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Louisville in Public Relations.
Anna Ford
Other 2022 Nutcracker roles: Party Guest, Snowflake, French Pastille, Flower (Waltz of the Flowers)
Anna Ford is originally from Lilburn, Georgia. She began her training at Northeast Atlanta Ballet under Artistic Director Jennifer Gordon. After graduating from high school in 2020, Ford moved from her hometown here to Louisville to join the Studio Company. She is currently a Level 10 in the Studio Company. Ford has performed beside the Company in many corps and soloist roles, as well as one principal role. These roles include Cygnets in Robert Curran’s "Swan Lake" and Marie in Val Caniparoli’s "The Brown-Forman Nutcracker."
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: 5 dancers play Marie in Louisville Ballet's The Nutcracker
