‘Twas one month before Nutcracker, when all through the PAC
Everybody was stirring and mostly on track;
The dancers were stretching their bodies with care,
Their pointe shoes and dance bags strewn everywhere.
Their parents and siblings were as deers before headlights,
For soon they too would be blinded by footlights;
For some this will be their first stage appearance,
Still others are annual “Party Parents.”
When offstage left there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from stage right to see what was the matter.
A gaggle of grown ups, not a one of them dancers;
Were gathered around boxes considering answers.
One box was quite tall and another quite skinny
To hide dancers inside of – but who knows how many;
For these boxes are magical and new this year
From out of them Clara’s “Dolls” will appear.
When, what to our wondering minds should come near,
But Hardin County’s own dance pioneer,
A little old lady, held in such high regard,
We all stepped aside for Miss Sherry Barnard.
More rapid than eagles her synapses fluttered
And before we could speak, she turned and she uttered;
“Come, Parents! Come dancers! Come folks playing Maids!
You’re all involved so come render some aid.”
“Come Dolls: Harlequin, French and Spanish!
Let’s practice how you’ll appear and then vanish.
“Come Ballerina! Come Soldier Boy and you, Soldier Girl!
Come all of the ‘Dolls,’ give these boxes a whirl.”
And then, in a twinkling, I heard all about
“Oohing” and “ahing” both long and drawn out.
“Okay now let’s focus,” her voice, itty bitty;
Sherry’s fighting bronchitis and feels pretty… well, bad.
“Please listen to Cris tell us all what is what,
And where and to whom to do what and what not.”
Cris Cooper is our Clara’s new Uncle Drosselmeyer
Since Sherry’s husband, Jim decided to retire.
Cris not only dances, he’s also a magician
So adding magic to “Nut” has become his new mission.
For two long hours, they plotted and planned
And by the end of the night things were well in hand.
With four more weeks of rehearsals to go
I’ve little doubt this will be quite a show.
And on December twenty-two when the curtain comes down
Once more on this fifty year tradition of Etown
I’ll hear folks exclaim, ere they walk out the door,
“Wow! That was great! We’ll be back to see more!”
This month the PAC Kid Spotlight shines on Elizabethtown High School student Grace Key. Catch Grace in The Nutcracker at the PAC right before Christmas. Learn more about Grace and our other PAC Kids.
Congratulations to Survey winners Joe and Ann Allen of Brandenburg. They are the lucky winners of a $20 PAC gift certificates for completing their Dickens’ Christmas Carol audience survey. Follow the PAC on Social Media and you too could be a winner!