Is the story of “The Nutcracker” just a fantasy? Maybe not, as 5-year-old Margaux Milne discovers. Videographer: Stefan Hansen.
This 90-second video warmed our hearts so much—especially given this year, especially given this day—that we decided we simply had to share it with you.
Because of the pandemic, Ballet Des Moines will be unable to perform the perennial holiday favorite “The Nutcracker” in person this year (though it is offering a variety of Nutcracker-related virtual experiences; find details here). That fact made the company’s creative director, Jami Milne, start pondering how she could help “our dancers to be seen—if not onstage, [then] in a way that keeps the magic alive.”
She turned to videographer Stefan Hansen, Des Moines Ballet company dancer Bobbie Lynn Kandravi and “the only tiny dancer I knew would be safe to shoot based on quarantine behavior … my daughter, Margaux,” she says.
Many readers may remember 5-year-old Margaux from the cover of our July/August issue; the unabashed joy that photo exuded generated more response than any cover image in recent memory. In this video, Margaux continues to evoke the enchantment of childhood and Milne continues to capture it. Enjoy.
