The Last Nutcracker

Editor

Dir: Michael Peterson
Peterson Pro Media

About the Process: When showing the making of a performance, the most obvious choice is to start with auditions, followed by drama-filled rehearsals, and peaking at a successful, brilliant performance.  But since this academy has put up this ballet for 19 years and the girls act more like a team than competitors, there was no inherent conflict in the production. A different story needed to be told; it was the story of the impact of this dance academy on the community.  I threw out the typical playbook and used the final performance as a backbone for the film. From there it was a matter of finding an emotional arc coming from the collective experience rather than a character's journey.

The live performance is cut between three different live performances with three different casts.