L'Ecole de Ballet Juneau AK Nutcracker 2007

The following news stories about previous L'Ecole performances all appeared in the Juneau Empire (www.juneauempire.com)

Web posted Thursday, May 20, 2004

L'Ecole: Farewell to Capito, Dalman
Girls have been with the troupe for 10 years
By KORRY KEEKER
JUNEAU EMPIRE

Juneau dance company L'Ecole de Ballet usually performs "The Nutcracker" every year during Thanksgiving weekend. But this year, the company decided on a spring show to honor two girls who have been with the troupe for more than 10 years.

Marissa Capito and Grace Dalman, both seniors at Juneau-Douglas High School, are graduating in a few weeks. Capito will attend the University of Alaska Anchorage. Dalman will head for design school in the Bay Area.

"I've had them since they were 7, so it's almost like having one of your kids leave for school," said L'Ecole instructor Patti Mattison. "We've taken some of the pieces that the kids won gold medals with at a competition in Seattle a year ago February, and we're doing a few things we've done before. Most of it is brand new, and it's going to end with something fun."

L'Ecole will have one show only, 7 p.m. Saturday, May 22, at the high school auditorium. Tickets are $8 in advance from Hearthside Books or one of the dancers, $10 at the door.

The show should last about 90 minutes. It will include 15 pieces, including Stravinsky, Bach, a few selections from "Les Sylphide," a solo from "Don Quixote" and a group of young dancers performing Golliwog's "Cakewalk."

"Grace and I both dance seven pieces in an hour and a half period," Capito said. "It's been really hard on us physically, but mentally we're all doing fine, and we're really excited about this show."

L'Ecole de Ballet's 'Nutcracker'
During its several incarnations in Juneau, the production has evolved

The snowflakes and flowers, the Cossacks and clowns join the Sugar Plum Fairy in "Nutcracker."

The Juneau nonprofit dance school L'Ecole de Ballet brings Tchaikovsky's holiday classic to the stage at the Juneau Douglas High School auditorium this weekend.

"This is our third or fourth production of 'Nutcracker,' " said L'Ecole de Ballet dance teacher and Director Patti Mattison. Mattison choreographed the dances for the show. She said she drew on some of her past choreography and redesigned some of the dances.

"Some go back to the first staging and others have evolved," she said, adding that she customizes the choreography to the students.

Mattison, who works full time as a safety program manager for the Federal Aviation Administration, has taught ballet for 27 years. Last year L'Ecole de Ballet produced a ballet based on the film "2001: A Space Odyssey."

Mattison said 25 or 30 dance students ranging from age 7 to adult will perform in "Nutcracker." Kayla Wilke, 12, will perform as Clara, and Marissa Capito, 16, will be the Sugar Plum Fairy.

Wilke has studied at L'Ecole de Ballet for four years and said she rehearses about 11 hours a week. Her toughest dance is with the nutcracker prince in the snow scene.

"I jump up and he holds me above his head," she said. "It was hard at first; I was scared he was going to drop me."

Chris Silver, who plays the prince, proved to be up to the task and Wilke has never been dropped.

"We have quite a few showcase roles," Mattison said. "It allows the kids to show off what they do best."

"Nutcracker" was first staged in 1892 at the Mariinsky Theatre of Russia, home of the Kirov Ballet. The ballet is based on the book "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King" by E.T.A. Hoffman. "Nutcracker" was one of Tchaikovsky's final compositions. He was commissioned by choreographer Marius Petipa to write the music for the Nutcracker Ballet In 1891 and died just two years later.

Mattison said she will use a recording of the traditional Tchaikovsky score for the production.

"Nutcracker" will be staged at 7 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at the Juneau-Douglas High School auditorium. Tickets are $10 in advance at Hearthside Books, $12 at the door and $2 less for seniors and children under 12.

Web posted Thursday, January 4, 2001
'2001': Space dance and a ballet hoedown at JDHS

By RILEY WOODFORD
The JUNEAU EMPIRE

The power of knowledge in a mysterious black monolith inspired early humans to reach for the stars in "2001: A Space Odyssey."

The film and music inspired Juneau ballet instructor and choreographer Patti Mattison to create a series of interpretive dances. Students from her Auke Bay dance school, L'Ecole de Ballet, will perform her ballet, "2001: A Space Odyssey," this weekend at Juneau-Douglas High School.

"The story of '2001' is the story of mankind into the future," Mattison said. "We've patterned our ballet after that."

The ballet uses the same music as the film soundtrack. Released in 1968, the British film by writer Arthur C. Clarke and director Stanley Kubrick was a critical and commercial success. The film put classical composer Richard Strauss in the Top 40 with "Also Sprach Zarathustra."

Mattison uses the same music, along with Johann Strauss's "Blue Danube" waltz and Aram Khatchaturian's "Gayane Ballet Suite," which are also part of the film score.

The dances loosely follow the first half of the story. In the first act, dancers portray early humans encountering a strange monolith, which Mattison said represents knowledge.

"It's an interpretive ballet," Mattison said. "Classical in some sense, but interpreting the emotions of the primitive people."

The music for that dance is "Requiem for Choral Voices," and lead dancer Marissa Capito, 15, said it's a tough one to dance to.

"There's no beat," Capito said. "I listen for changes in the vocals for dance cues."

The ballet departs from the film during the second half. Rather than trace the film's story of the journey to Jupiter, Mattison has her dancers visit three different planets. In "Lux Aeterna," the dancers visit a water planet.

"We're going to dance like we're moving through water," Capito said.

"2001" will last about an hour, Mattison said.

The second portion of the program is completely different, a presentation of "Appalachian Spring." Choreographer Martha Graham commissioned the score for the ballet from composer Aaron Copeland in 1943. Mattison is using the Copeland score and loosely drawing on Graham's story.

"It's set in a village in Appalachia in the 1920s," Mattison said. "It's about a girl who is forced by her family to marry against her will."

"It's a tragedy," said Capito.

Eight dancers will perform in "2001" and about 30 dancers will participate in "Appalachian Spring."

"We have a hoedown in it, and that's probably the funnest scene," said Alice Miller, 11. Robin Barnes, 18, will be the lead dancer in "Appalachian Spring."

Mattison opened her dance program in 1994 and now has about 50 students. L'Ecole de Ballet is based at the Auke Bay American Legion Hall.

Performances will be at 7 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at the Juneau Douglas High School auditorium. Admission is $10, $6.50 for children ages 5 to 12, and for seniors. Kids under 5 are free.

Wednesday, November 25, 1998

"The Nutcracker": Marissa Capito is the Sugar Plum Fairy in L'Ecole de Ballet's production of Peter Tchaikovsky's "Nutcracker" set for Saturday and Sunday at the Juneau-Douglas High auditorium.

BRIAN WALLACE / THE JUNEAU EMPIRE

Nutcracker comes to life

Last modified at 3:14 p.m. on Wednesday, November 25, 1998

By RILEY WOODFORD
THE JUNEAU EMPIRE

Eighty-five costumes and six months of hard work by more than 40 people will all come together this weekend for two shows of the ``Nutcracker.''

``We're doing the whole `Nutcracker,' '' said Patti Mattison, artistic director and ballet teacher at the nonprofit Juneau dance school, L' Ecole de Ballet.

The school is staging Peter Tchaikovsky's ballet at 7 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at the Juneau-Douglas High School auditorium.

``We really started working hard beginning in June,'' Mattison said.

Mattison, who works full-time as a safety program manager for the Federal Aviation Administration, designed and sewed about 70 of the 85 costumes in the production, including the outfit for Mother Ginger.

The costume weighs about 45 pounds, and the skirt, which is 10 feet across, incorporates a 25-pound aluminum hoop. Dancer Bob Fagen is playing Mother Ginger and will be performing on stilts.

``Let's hope he doesn't kill himself,'' she said.

Mattison has also designed much of the choreography for the production, adapting the traditional ballet to the skill levels of the student dancers.

The cast includes several parents and siblings of the dancers, as well as students of the ballet school. Marissa Capito will be the Sugar Plum Fairy.

``The young lady came to me a year ago, and said `I'm your next Sugar Plum for Nutcracker,' '' Mattison said. ``I don't think she believed I'd really give her the part. I worked with her over the last year and watched her progress. When I named the parts, I thought she'd have a heart attack that she actually got it.''

Rebecca Heinz designed the sets, and Mattison's husband Charles worked on the sets and staging.

``We've been working days and nights, from 7 a.m. to midnight,'' said Mattison, a self-employed jeweler. ``I've put aside my job for now to work full-time on the show.''

The couple has been married nearly 24 years, and Mattison said his wife has worked a full-time job and taught ballet in the evenings ever since they were first married.

``This is a normal thing for us,'' he said.

Mattison said parents and siblings of the dancers have been working on the production and will be active behind the scenes during the two shows.

``We get the families really involved,'' he said.

The music for the production will be the recording from the soundtrack of the recent ``Nutcracker'' feature film, Mattison said.

The artistic director said she plans to do the show again next year.

``I plan to make it bigger and better every year,'' she said. ``We have thousands of dollars in costumes and sets. I sure hope we're going to do it again.''

Tickets for adults are $10 in advance and $12 at the door. Student tickets, for those 17 and under, are $5 in advance and $6 at the door.

Web posted Friday, November 26, 1999

Entertainment briefly

THE JUNEAU EMPIRE

Dance school presents `Nutcracker'

JUNEAU - The Juneau dance school L'Ecole de Ballet will present ``The Nutcracker'' ballet in two performances this weekend at the Juneau-Douglas High School auditorium.

The school is staging Peter Tchaikovsky's ballet at 7 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday. Tickets, available at Hearthside Books and at the door, are $15 for reserved seats, $10 for the general audience and $7 for students and seniors. Reserved tickets are available only at the Nugget Mall bookstore.

This is the second year the school has staged the entire ballet. Patti Mattison, artistic director and ballet teacher at the nonprofit dance school, plans to run the show as an annual event.