Tulsa Ballet cancels The Nutcracker, reimagines their 2020|2021 fall season with socially distanced performances under the guidance of COVID Consultant.
TULSA, OK – Tulsa Ballet is canceling The Nutcracker this holiday season and will be reimagining their 2020|2021 fall season with performances meant to meet and exceed CDC guidelines. Those measures are aimed at keeping their dancers, staff, and audience members alike as safe as possible during the current pandemic, and were achieved thanks to the professional health and safety consultation provided by Board Certified Infectious Disease Physician Dr. Lauren Brett Jaggers.
Tulsa Ballet has spent the last few months evaluating how to safely return to the stage during the pandemic, defining safety parameters with the Tulsa Ballet dancers’ union, AGMA [American Guild of Music Artists], and with the help of Dr. Jaggers.
Through much discussion, Tulsa Ballet has determined that a return to large venue performances is unsafe for both dancers and audience members. For this reason, the annual Tulsa Ballet production of The Nutcracker, Tulsa’s holiday tradition for the past fifty years, has been canceled for this December.
With the help of Dr. Jaggers, however, Tulsa Ballet will be returning to the stage this fall for the first time since February. Out of Denver, Colorado, but a Tulsa native, Dr. Jaggers served as director of H1N1 pandemic response for Duke University Health Care System and University and is now in private practice in Denver. “I have known Dr. Jaggers since I first came to Tulsa in 1995,” says Artistic Director Marcello Angelini. “Today she is a most respected infectious disease physician, and throughout the course of this pandemic has been our go-to person when making health-related decisions for the organization. Dr. Jaggers gives you her unbiased and untainted opinion, at times ending with, ‘This might not be what you wanted to hear, but…’ and that’s what I like and respect about her. She adds yet another layer to Tulsa Ballet’s dedication to the health and wellbeing of its family.”
You can read a full bio on Dr. Jaggers at https://tulsaballet.org/covid19/.
Tulsa Ballet is excited to be performing live in their Studio K theater on Brookside at the end of October, featuring three brand-new works by three internationally revered dance makers: Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, Yury Yanowsky, and Ma Cong.
In order to accommodate socially distanced seating, each performance will only house thirty audience members. To increase safety measures the performances will last under fifty minutes, include reduced intermission times, and masks will be worn by the audience, staff, and dancers. Tulsa Ballet is also installing a state-of-the-art air purification system, proven to reduce airborne pathogens. Due to the reduced capacity of the theater for social distancing, this particular program will be limited to subscribers only.
“The arts are all about the creativity of the human soul,” says Angelini. “Artists tend to shine when required to think outside the box. We will continue to entertain you and engage you with our shows…that’s always our promise.”
Interview opportunities available:
Bethany Kirby | Marketing Manager
918.798.9538 | Bethany.kirby@tulsaballet.org