Warring ‘Nutcrackers’

Within two weeks of each other, on the same stage, two separate casts of young ballet dancers will produce essentially the same show: the Christmastime classic “The Nutcracker.”

But the real drama--over how there came to be two competing versions of the ballet--is backstage.

After a six-year association, the Channel Islands Ballet Company and the Channel Islands Ballet School recently parted ways over the company’s decision to hire another director for its annual holiday show.

Loyal to the former director, who is also the school’s chief instructor, all but a handful of the school’s students and their parents rushed to stage a rival production called “Kingdom of Sweets--Clara’s Dream.”

The ballet company says Clarissa Boeriu resigned as its “Nutcracker” director, forcing the company to hire a replacement from Wisconsin.

Boeriu said she never resigned, that she was waiting for a new contract that never came. She and her supporters accuse the company’s board of demanding too much of her dancers, even risking their health, all in an effort to boost the company’s prestige and attract more grants and donations.

Students “were always telling me, ‘Oh God, we’re so tired,’ ” Boeriu said. “I said we can’t go on like this. These are children.”

Boeriu and her business partner, Kathie Noblin, say they told the company they could not subject their students to the number of performances it was scheduling, particularly any out-of-county performances. That condition, they say, is why the company’s board unexpectedly cut Boeriu loose.

Company leaders counter the performance schedule has not become any more demanding than it has been in recent years. They said they simply wanted to open up “The Nutcracker” to more dancers countywide and expose more schoolchildren to ballet through the company’s outreach program.

They said Boeriu was unwilling to join them on that course, and for that reason asked to be released from her contract.

“She didn’t want to continue the way that we were continuing,” company Chairman Kathy Nishimori said.

Noblin and Boeriu support the company’s outreach programs, but argue that since the split the company has continued to profit off the work of their school and its students. Without the school and lacking any of its own dancers, the company is little more than a board that raises money and produces shows, they said.

“We are a company because we have the dancers,” Boeriu said. “They are purely bureaucrats that call themselves a company.”

“The only thing I can say is their reputation has been built upon the productivity of our school, meaning the ability of our dancers and our fine technique and the excellent ballet that my partner produces,” Noblin said.

Since the Channel Island Ballet School’s founding in 1992, it had been the official studio of Channel Islands Ballet Company and had trained nearly all of the dancers for the company’s annual “Nutcracker” and other performances.

For this reason many parents were surprised to learn in August that Boeriu would not be directing this year’s “Nutcracker.” Those who received the letter from Nishimori were invited to audition before the new directors.

But nearly all of the school’s dancers chose to stick with Boeriu and the ballet school.

Company leaders said they understand the dancers’ decision to stay, especially given Boeriu and Noblin’s stipulation that anyone who chose to perform in the rival production would not be welcomed at their studio.

“Out of 17 schools in the county, that’s the only school that made that requirement,” company Vice Chairman Suzanne Drace said.

In 10 weeks, Boeriu, Noblin and an army of parents threw together their own production, to be performed twice Sunday at the Oxnard Performing Arts Center.

Meanwhile, the ballet company, using 80 other young dancers from around the county, is preparing to stage its production Dec. 4-6 at the same location.

For its show, the ballet school had to create all new costumes, despite the fact parents had donated money and time to create outfits that will now be worn by the company’s cast.

Representatives for Channel Islands Ballet Company, a nonprofit charity, acknowledge the parents’ efforts toward making the costumes but said no charity should be expected to return donations.

Besides, Drace said, the school’s students had the chance to perform in the company’s show, wearing the costumes and dancing to the accompaniment of the New West Symphony instead of recorded music.

“The only reason they’re not performing in those costumes is because the school told them they couldn’t,” Drace said. “The only reason they’re not performing with an orchestra is because the school told them they couldn’t.”

Since the split, both sides said the other has tried to disrupt their production at every turn.

School officials say the ballet company tried to enlist Oxnard officials to bar the school from the performing arts center. Company representatives, on the other hand, said they have received “threatening and harassing letters” from the school and parents.

Despite the bickering, both groups report selling about 2,000 tickets each and say the ongoing feud has only made their productions stronger.

“As far as I’m concerned,” Noblin said, “good, fair competition is great for everyone.”

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

FYI

* “Kingdom of the Sweets-Clara’s Dream,” performed by the Channel Islands Ballet School, runs Sunday at 2 and 5 p.m. at the Oxnard Performing Arts Center, 800 Hobson Way. Tickets, which range from $8 to $12 with four-ticket packages for $35, can be reserved by calling the school at 643-8909, or the PAC at 486-2424.

* The Channel Islands Ballet Company will present “The Nutcracker” at the Oxnard PAC, Dec. 4 at 7:30 p.m., Dec. 5 at 3 and 7:30 p.m. and Dec. 6 at 3 p.m. Tickets are $11 to $28 and can be reserved by calling 648-4430 or 648-2827.