When I was a teen at full time ballet school, we had a small touring production of The Nutcracker. I danced from school auditoriums to grand stages, with live orchestras, and recordings. When I tell you I can sing the entire score in my sleep, I mean it, . 🎵

When I started teaching, I recognized that same passion and drive in my adult dancers, even though chances to learn the classics were hard to come by for them.

In 2025, it seems like everything is a little harder to come by...especially if you're trying not to get walloped by a virus that tanks your immune system¹, exercise tolerance², organ function³, and brain⁴.

That’s why it’s so important to me to offer online, pay-what-you-can classes. Everyone deserves safe access to the arts.

My teaching journey, especially the transition to online classes, gave me space to ask what really matters in pursuing dance and creating meaning during tough times. How can we take the magic of story ballets, our innate drive for self expression, and the movement skills that nurture our bodies and our artistry...and reshape them to meet dancers where they're at?

My silly little tradition of Nutcracker class is one of my favourite ways to explore those ideas together. I've found that choosing simple exercises that don't take too much brainpower to learn, makes room for richer quality of movement — of course the Tchaikovsky soundtrack gives you a boost in that department!

This year, our centre practice will be an excerpt from Nutcracker’s Waltz of the Snowflakes, customized for beginners at home, and adaptable for seated dancers.

🥜 🩰 Nutcracker Ballet is on THIS SATURDAY from 9:30-10:30 am. 🪄 ❄️

You'll:

• learn a gentle movement skills warm up, then set it to to one of the most beautiful songs in the show

• dance a beginner-friendly barre with optional challenges for more experienced dancers

• break Waltz of the Snowflakes into manageable pieces

• put it all together so you can dance a mini performance in your living room (household pets make the best audience members) 😸 🐶 🐟

As always, pop-up classes are pay-what-you-can with a recommended rate of $0-25.

Register now to get the Zoom link, e-transfer info, and the recording.

Can’t wait to dance some ballet magic with you,

Natasha

1 https://johnsnowproject.org/primers/sars-cov-2-leaves-a-lasting-mark-on-the-immune-system/ “SARS-CoV-2 leaves a lasting mark on the immune system”

2 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1043276024002984 “the skeletal muscle alterations in long COVID are distinct from those resulting from strict bed rest.”

3 https://www.nature.com/articles/s44324-024-00038-x “Mitochondrial dysfunction in acute and post-acute phases of COVID-19 and risk of non-communicable diseases” Sorry, this one’s really long!

4 https://www.mdpi.com/2673-8112/5/12/207 “Our knowledge of the precise mechanisms and underlying causes that result in these long-term neurological repercussions is still lacking” Another long read!