December 12, 2024
By: Sandra van Maanen

Under the leadership of choreographer Jeroen Verbruggen, the family performance is immediately the largest production Introdans has tackled to date. “Everyone knows The Nutcracker, but I’m making my own story out of it. It definitely won’t be typical mainstream,” says former ballet dancer Verbruggen.

For ten years now, he has been creating spectacular pieces for both classical and contemporary companies across Europe. These are productions that, as he describes them, are characterized as an “all-in-all visual journey.” “Sets, high-fashion costumes, dance, and music come together on one level.” This time too, the performance promises to be multi-layered, with elements that audiences young and old, as well as fans of dance, music, and theater, will thoroughly enjoy.

A Blessing in Disguise
A blessing in disguise — that’s how you could describe the backstory. Verbruggen created the story ballet Casse Noisette ten years ago for the Ballet du Grand Théâtre de Genève. It was his first major production as a choreographer. His ideas about dance, combined with the costumes and sets of the famous Parisian designer duo On Aura Tout Vu, elevated the Christmas classic to a new level. “They are masters at thinking outside the box. It’s no surprise that their work can be seen in top museums.”

The successful production ran for no less than seven years until the Swiss company appointed new management who decided it was enough. “They called me and asked: Jeroen, what should we do with all the costumes and those enormous sets? It’s kind of in the way, should we just burn it? To be fair, it did take up a few truckloads. Unfortunately, I’m not the kind of person who can sell himself well. Knocking on companies’ doors with a ready-made production… I just can’t do it.

But I did think: burn it…? ‘Give me a month,’ I said, ‘maybe I can find a better solution.’”

Two Years Too Early
Exactly in that month, Roel Voorintholt called him. “He was interested; this story fits perfectly in Introdans’ series of family performances. The only problem was that it was two years too early. So, we had to find a place to store that enormous set and all the costumes for two years. And we managed to do that.”

A simple hand-off? Not quite. Verbruggen and Introdans are not taking the easy route by mindlessly reusing the choreography that was made for the company in Geneva back then. “A lot has happened in ten years; when I created the choreography, I was very young, with a different kind of energy. My choreographies were, for example, much more physical. I have evolved as a creator, and at the same time, the world has changed. Now, I’m giving the story a 2024 feel, replacing the somewhat rigid nature of the past with something different — a more narrative choreography. The dancers have also changed! During the first rehearsals, I already saw how good they are here. I don’t need to push; they contribute ideas, and new movements emerge during rehearsals. Introdans dancers bring something extra: acting talent. This makes it more playful and, at the same time, more layered.”

Piece as a Painting
Verbruggen does not limit his role as choreographer to the dance aspect alone. “I see my pieces more as paintings with something for everyone. As a child, I already loved spectacle, surprises on stage. Lighting effects, smoke machines… In that sense, a classical performance of The Nutcracker was not an ideal match right away. The Christmas trees, the clock, the snowflakes — everything seemed fixed. We’re approaching it differently now. The story and the music remain, and the effects are there. But the vibes! They bring us closer to our humanity.”

[Read the full article here- Dutch only]