The Nutcracker

At a time when the world needs familiarity and reassurance that it is still possible for everything to be normal again, Scottish Ballet’s sugary treat of a Nutcracker provides the necessary soothing balm, wrapped up like a glittering, old-fashioned box of chocolates.

The treats therein are no less satisfying for being familiar. Using Peter Darrell’s 1973 choreography for the company he founded, this is a Nutcracker that doesn’t try to be dark or edgy - the company has plenty of that elsewhere in its repertoire. Thanks to Lez Brotherston’s set and costume design, it is delightful to behold.

Act I is packed with storytelling to the point of bursting, as The Colonel and his wife welcome guests, including the magician Drosselmeyer, to their Christmas Eve party. Act II takes the bewitched young Clara off to the Land of Sweets, where she witnesses a series of dances representing confections from around the world.

Reality only impinges slightly during the overture, when the two maiden aunts encounter a young lad begging on the street outside The Colonel’s house. They give him a sweet, and there any resemblance to reality ends. When Drosselmeyer passes, the magician goes one better, transforming the lad into the Nutcracker Prince.

The party itself contains more than enough for several viewings. Watch the aunts and their attempts at social climbing and you’ll miss the interactions of The Colonel’s children - the naughty Fritz leading a charge that will echo Clara’s later encounters with the mice and breaking Clara’s nutcracker toy - but watch the kids, and you’ll miss the grown-ups’ interactions.

All eyes are on Drosselmeyer, though, who, in the first of two moves to bring the ballet into the 21st century, is not an uncle but an aunt. Danced by Madeline Squire, she brings a proper sense of magic to the room with her nifty sleight-of-hand and magnetic presence.

The entertainers she brings - Evan Loudon, Marge Hendrick and Grace Horler - reflect the passion and commitment they will exert later in the ballet when they are transformed. Loudon has magnificent poise and command of the stage as the Nutcracker Prince, Hendrick’s Sugar Plum Fairy is as delicate of foot as you could wish, and Horler’s Snow Queen is an austere presence, leading her snowflakes with disdain.

Scottish Ballet’s artistic director Christopher Hampson’s second change comes in the international dances. The Chinese element, danced by Alice Kawalek and Kayla-Maree Tarantolo, is now based on a fan dance, while Roseanna Leney’s sublime Arabian dance is a wonderful creation of slow and articulate passion.

All the innovations are smooth evolutions in a ballet that is as satisfying as it ever was - and sumptuous enough to leave you wanting more.