Playing live, 'Nutcracker' musicians bring unseen signature to holiday staple

“The Nutcracker” is a holiday staple, and for Ballet Arizona and many other productions around the world, a pit full of musicians is part of the tradition

PHOENIX -- Musicians in a cramped space under a Phoenix stage send up the familiar tones of “The Nutcracker.” Overhead, satin-and-glue pointed toes pitter-patter across stage in a performance of the holiday favorite.

For Ballet Arizona and many other productions around the world, a pit full of musicians is as much part of the tradition as the dancers above.

Shows can turn to recordings as they weather costs and crises, and in recent years, productions across the country have been working to recover after the pandemic forced them to go silent during public health closures. But fans, musicians and union leaders say live music brings an unseen signature to each show — even if the path is sometimes fraught.

In New York, a production some consider the quintessential American “Nutcracker” opened minutes after musicians agreed to a contract. In Los Angeles, a company gives audiences both options. And in the Phoenix show, the pit was put on hiatus during the Great Recession tied to the 2008 housing crisis.

It wasn’t until joining Ballet Arizona five years ago that Demitra Bereveskos performed “The Nutcracker” to live music. Her “Nutcracker” debut was when she was 7, likely as an angel and little mouse, she said; by her first year in the Phoenix production, she was dancing in “Waltz of the Flowers.”