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Review: ‘Getting to the Nutcracker’ is a corps story without a dramatic core

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That hardy ballet perennial “The Nutcracker,” muscular and sparkly, is not just a seasonal ritual for audiences. For many young amateur dancers, it’s a rite of passage, a testing ground for their nascent career dreams.

“Getting to the Nutcracker” follows one such group of Los Angeles students during the three-month odyssey from auditions to opening night. It’s an affectionate and admiring collection of moments, but the director’s wobbly choreography never locates a dramatic core for this corps’ story.

Filmmaker Serene Meshel-Dillman and her crew move among the classes and offices at the Marat Daukayev School of Ballet in the Mid-Wilshire district, where the beloved director is a former star of what used to be called the Kirov Ballet. The documentary captures the rising sense of purpose among students who range in age from 3 to 18. Among the teens whom Meshel-Dillman focuses on, most are boys, an unexpected choice and one that pays off. They’re intelligent and charming, and each offers his own perspective.

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One boy’s father disapproves of ballet as a male pursuit, but that’s the only hint of friction in a film that begins to feel like a scrapbook of fond memories. They’re meaningful for those involved but lack a driving purpose for the viewer.

What Meshel-Dillman, who was a child ballerina, showcases best is the collaborative spirit, the community that arises around children’s artistic pursuits. And if backstage drama never materializes, there’s a small thrill — for Angelenos, at least — in watching two dancers rush across the city on L.A. Metro trains.

“Getting to the Nutcracker.”

No MPAA rating.

Running time: 1 hour, 40 minutes.

Playing: Laemmle’s Playhouse 7, Pasadena.

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