Krystal Kennedy featured in The Leader(2023)

Krystal Kennedy was only 10 when she witnessed Tchaikovsky’s “The Nutcracker.”

She was in costume and on stage.

“The first I ever saw or heard any of the music was when I performed in it,” she told The Leader. She played the parts of a mouse, an angel and a rosebud.

Kennedy was raised in upstate New York, in a city not all that different from Port Townsend.

“At that time, it was fun because I got to be on stage and it was really inspiring to watch the older, principled dancers. To see them en pointe, it was like, how do they go up on their feet? I can’t do that!”

She was hooked then and there and has been dancing for 30 years.

“John is doing the choreography and for each person who does that, you hear their own storyline and how they portray that is through the dance. PTB is using Balanchine’s choreography but John has danced this, and choreographed this for years, and in each place he and his company put their own spin on it, depending on the community and the dancers,” Kennedy explained.

Kennedy plays the Snow Queen who first appears near the end of the first act and figures prominently in her favorite part of the ballet. It is Christmas Eve and young Clara awakens to see a battle between mice and gingerbread men, who are led by her beloved nutcracker who has come to life and eventually transforms into a handsome prince. Clara helps the Prince defeat the Mouse King and the two embark on a journey through the Land of Ice and Snow and into the Land of Sweets.

There, Clara is entertained by the Sugar Plum Fairy who dances for her and presents gifts from around the world.

“For me The Nutcracker means the holidays. It is a fun and timeless piece that people get to see. It’s got youth from the area and anyone, all ages, will enjoy the dancing, the music and the costumes. It’s just a joy just to see the adults from the community put on this show,” Kennedy said.

She confesses she is beginning to feel the wear and tear of dancing in pointe shoes so she’s uncertain how many more years she’ll be able to do so.

Kennedy said she moved to Port Townsend with her husband 10 years ago.

PTB performs The Nutcracker on Saturday, Dec. 9 at 2 and 6 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. More information is available on the internet: porttownsendballet.com.

Source: THE PORT TOWNSEND LEADER