Our New Golden Sugar Plum Fairy | First Professionally-Handmade Tutu

First Professionally-Handmade Tutu

It was a wonderful day at the Academy recently! Our first professionally-handmade tutu arrived for our Golden Sugar Plum Fairy!

From the Ukraine to Mission

The making of the tutu was organized by one of our Academy ballet teachers, Anton Lykhanov. It was through his connections with the Kharkiv National Opera and Ballet Theatre in the Ukraine.  We were very excited to learn that their wardrobe mistress had agreed to make our new Golden Sugar Plum Fairy tutu! When the tutu was ready, a friend and former dancer visiting home in the Ukraine traveled back with it from Kharkiv to Toronto where she now lives.  From there, it was a short courier journey across the country to arrive here in Mission.  It was truly a global collaboration. 🙂

Nutcracker Guest Artists

In all of our previous Nutcracker productions, over seven years, we have hired professional guest artists. This is because our school did not have students trained to a level necessary to perform this challenging lead role.  In fact, three of our current teachers, all former professional classical ballet dancers, were also our past Nutcracker guest artists: Anton Lykhanov, Olena Zakharova, and Reid Colton, who is performing again this year.

Academy Milestone

This year’s Nutcracker is a milestone for the Academy as it is our first production in which our own student will perform the role of the Sugar Plum Fairy. She will have the privilege of wearing our new golden Sugar Plum Fairy tutu.  And as we maintain a costume wardrobe, our students never pay for their costumes, so our younger students may now hope to wear this tutu in their futures.

It’s an amazing progression since our arrival in Mission seven years ago!