Tighten Up

Each year around the holidays, the Colorado Ballet presents Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker, and Gil Boggs, the company's artistic director, notes that the latest version, which debuts today, isn't terribly different than its predecessors. "As we like to say, we do your grandmother's Nutcracker," he concedes. Boggs insists that sticking to the long-established formula isn't boring, though, thanks to contributions from new dancers — Slava Buchkovskiy and Emily Bromberg are the principals this time around — and the opportunity to share ballet with multiple generations. "It's become a family tradition. For a lot of people, this is their one exposure to the art form of dance," he notes. "And you don't want to fix what's not broken."

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More About

• Gil Boggs
• Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky
• Colorado Ballet
• Slava Buchkovskiy
• Emily Bromberg

The Nutcracker gets cracking at 2 and 7:30 p.m. today at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House, 950 13th Street. Tickets range from $12.95 to $117, with productions continuing through December 24. Get the particulars at 303-837-8888 or www.coloradoballet.org.
Nov. 24-Dec. 24, 2007