• News Release: 12/3/2024

    New Paradigm Dance Theater
    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

    Contact Information:
    Julia Wilkinson Manley (Co-Founder & Co-Artistic Director)
    info@newparadigmdance.org
    www.comovelab.com/nutcracker
    720.336.1508

    December 2, 2024 - In its inaugural season, New Paradigm Dance Theater (NPDT) and sister
    organization Colorado Movement Lab (CML) will premiere their brand-new production of
    Nutcracker Reimagined at Parsons Theatre in Northglenn, CO on December 11 & 12, 2024.
    Under the artistic direction of Chris Harris and Julia Wilkinson Manley, NPDT is embarking on an
    incredible new adventure - a BRAND-NEW production of The Nutcracker unlike anything anyone
    has seen before. In this professionally-produced rendition of a beloved classic, expect all new
    characters based on Colorado flora and fauna, all to a reimagined use of the familiar Tchaikovsky
    score. The performance will take place at the gorgeous Parsons Theatre in Northglenn.
    In this tale, Alice - an Abert Squirrel - sets off in the morning to gather acorns, mushrooms, and
    flowers. She flits amongst Geraniums, Columbines, Asters, and big (very cute) bees. She is
    enchanted by a Swallowtail Butterfly, Hummingbirds, and several varieties of Mushrooms. Later,
    Alice and her family host a Harvest Gathering, inviting their friends the Fox Squirrels. While
    gathering their foraged Acorns, Mushrooms, and Flower Buds, Alice reveals a special treat - a
    pine cone bedecked with glorious pine nuts! Unbeknownst to the squirrels, however, some
    Clark’s Nutcracker Jays have been watching the festivities, intrigued by the glimmer of the pine
    nuts. They fly in to taunt the squirrels and steal the pine cone. But then! A Great Horned Owl
    appears, turning the whole affair into a chaotic scurry, during which little Alice gets bonked on
    the head. In her stupor, she dreams of many of her fellow forest inhabitants - Little Brown Bats,
    Lark Buntings, Black-Footed Ferrets, Kit Foxes, and Boreal Toads who dance for her. As she
    awakens, she discovers the snow is falling, and it is time for hibernation.

    The new production boasts over 550 new costume elements, each depicting creatures of the
    Colorado forests, with scenic design created by Denver School of the Arts student Aaron Lemig.
    Co-Artistic Director Julia Wilkinson Manley has served dancers in the North Metro area for 22
    years as the former Artistic Director of the School of Ballet Nouveau Colorado and Colorado
    Conservatory of Dance since 2003. She was honored in October 2023 as a Legend of Dance by
    the Dance Archive at The University of Denver. Wilkinson Manley says, “It’s time for this beloved
    holiday tradition to have a complete overhaul. This incredible score is capable of telling great
    stories, but I had no idea... that is until I tried to break away from what I’d known it to be for
    over four decades!’”

    About the process of rethinking this ballet from scratch, Co-Artistic Director Chris Harris says
    “I’ve never been a fan of the traditional Nutcracker, due primarily to its long-standing cultural
    insensitivity, but this production is inspiring and uses actual ecology to tell a beautiful and real
    story.” Chris is the founder and former Artistic Director of Louder Than Words Dancetheater,
    which ran for 13 years in Denver, Colorado.

    In addition to rethinking an old classic, the directors have brought together dancers of all stages
    in life. The cast includes 3-year-olds to adult dancers, pre-professional dancers who train 20
    hours per week to after-school ballet students from nearby Doral Academy. The cast also
    features NPDT’s EMPOWER dance company - a dance company comprised of teens and adults
    with special needs.

    About the Artistic Directors:
    Chris Harris has been a choreographer, artistic director, visual artist, dancer, pedagogue, and teacher working along
    the Front Range for over three decades. Previously, she was artist in residence for the Denver School of the Arts for
    17 years, Co-Director of the Boulder Jazz Dance Workshop, and Assistant Artistic Director of Interweave Dance
    Theatre. In 2005, she founded and became Artistic Director/Choreographer for Louder Than Words Dancetheatre
    and the Colorado Youth Dance Theater. Both projects performed in Denver until 2018. Chris holds a BFA in Dance
    and Choreography from the University of Colorado, Boulder and an MFA in Interdisciplinary Arts from Goddard
    College where she focused on dance integration, notation, and communication.

    After her career as a professional dancer with Ballet Ireland, David Taylor Dance Theater, and Ballet Nouveau
    Colorado, Julia Wilkinson Manley became the School Director for Broomfield-based Ballet Nouveau Colorado from
    2003-2013. In 2013 she founded a new non-profit organization, Colorado Conservatory of Dance (CCD), becoming
    CEO and Artistic Director. As a leader of CCD for 10 years, she developed community education programming for
    over 60,000 individuals, a nationally-respected syllabus for dance training, and produced and choreographed over
    25 ballets. Julia was honored in October 2023 as a Legend of Dance by the Dance Archive at the University of
    Denver.

    AT A GLANCE
    NEW PARADIGM DANCE THEATER

    www.newparadigmdance.org
    720-336-1508 (Colorado Movement Lab)
    Performances of Nutcracker Reimagined:
    When: Wednesday, December 11 and Thursday, December 12, 2024 at 6:30pm
    Where: Parsons Theatre, 1 E Mem Pkwy Entrance, Northglenn, CO 80233
    Tickets: Standard - $30
    Student/Senior - $25
    To buy tickets: comovelab.com/nutcracker

    Sensory-Friendly Performance:
    When: Saturday, December 14, 2024 at 6:30pm
    Where: Doral Academy of Colorado, 10110 Church Ranch Way, Westminster, CO 80021
    What: A performance hosted by Doral Academy specifically meant to serve the families of a person with special needs.
    Tickets: $3 for each family member and FREE for VIPs (loved one with special needs)
    To buy tickets: 720-336-1508

    For exclusive photo and interview opportunities with the Artistic Directors or students, or to
    find out more, email or call Julia Wilkinson Manley at info@newparadigmdance.org or
    720-336-1508.

    ABOUT NPDT:
    New Paradigm Dance Theater (NPDT) develops creative artists and thinkers of the future by creating an artistic
    environment where dancers and choreographers can be vulnerable, question and break assumptions, and focus on
    creating their own pathway to artistry.

    ABOUT CML:
    At Colorado Movement Lab (CML), dance merges with body science, art, and the potentiality of movement. With
    superb training in multiple dance forms, extensive kinesthetic expertise, a devotion to individualized attention, and
    a spirit of invention, we create an environment where innovation and tradition harmoniously coexist.