Enchanting!

I grew up watching a video of this Nutcracker every Christmas Eve, that we had taped off of PBS. When I saw that it was available on DVD I bought it right away. Having just finished watching it I am pleased to say I was just as, if not more, enchanted by this beautifully produced Nutcracker, as I was when a child. The "special effects" are a bit cheesy, but to me it just adds to the charm (and you must remember that it was made in 1977). Gelsey Kirkland is such a graceful dancer, she's like a feather on a breeze. Of course, Baryshnikov is also stunning, and I think he makes the Prince roll, which is not always that exciting, quite fun to watch. The whole production is beautiful from sets, to costumes, to the entire ballet company. I'm glad that I can again make this the magical start to my Christmas.

Magical

Okay...seriously, this was filmed in the 70's, do not expect the same cinematography that we have today. But, I grew up on this, and it's MAGICAL to me. This is still my favorite version of the Nutcracker, we watched it during the Christmas season as I grew up, when we didn't have a ballet close enough to attend. Baryshnikov is magical onstage, and gelsey kirkland brings it to life. It's not traditional in the sense, that the main character is a child...it was coreographed as a young woman, so you get to see the pairs dancing between kirkland, and baryshnikov. Beautiful.

The Nutcracker fighting the mice is the best ballet scene ever.......

I have this and the Ballanchine version. The latter is pretty but the dancing not memorable. This one is a joy and wonder to watch. Not only is Baryshnikov superb, several other dancers are almost as good. To watch the Nutcracker (Baryshnikov) battle the mice is thrilling, awesome, and has to be seen to be fully appreciated.
Even my 3 year old granddaughter prefers this one to the more child oriented Ballanchine version.