Truth About the Nutcracker 2014!

It's show day! What an incredible experience, and it gets better and better every year. I literally cried my way through most of this show. I was so moved and touched, and so incredibly proud of my girl. She works so hard, and puts in countless hours every week. Her dedication is paying off and she has continued to improve so much. I love so many of these dancers, and it warms my heart to see them shine on that stage.
It's time for photo overload, and I can't wait for the professional ones. ;)

Opening grave scene...

Party Pas (one of my favorite dances...so thankful Zoe was put in this dance)...

Dolls...

Angelic Host...

Snow Waltz (a stunning and incredibly difficult piece!)...

Mirlitons!

Arabian...

 

Dew Drop, the Flower Waltz Lead....

Avalanche Finale...

Final bows!

So proud of our girl!

 and of course, Mimi brought Zoe a bunch of macarons...

(Taylor, Zoe, Jenna, Sierra, Zack)

I was working backstage for the second show. Joe and Cooper were supposed to attend the first show with me, but Coop ended up having a basketball game, so they switched tickets. Although he has been a pretty sick kid this week, and missed quite a bit of school, he was determined to get to his game. Anyway, halfway through the first show, the city had a power outage! It created a bit of chaos, and some craziness behind the scene, we had no choice but to shut the show down and pack up. I was blown away by the positive attitudes and the quick work of what needed to be done!
Nicole invited everyone to the studio where the dancers could do a version of Act 2. Joe and Coop decided to go home since Cooper wasn't feeling well at all. Zoe and I headed to the studio with everyone else and they made the best of the situation and still performed with joy and their hearts wide open. The smaller  audience was gracious and enthusiastic. We finished up with a cast party that was catered at the studio, and it made for a very late but fun night.

It was an eventful day, filled with highs and lows, but oh so wonderful! I'm sad I won't get to watch that performance again, it was definitely one of the best I've seen. That being said, we are all ready for a break and a little time to relax and get ready for Christmas!