One of the things I most enjoy doing is introducing grandchildren to the ballet. Being able to share something I love so much with children I love so much is a wonderful experience for everyone. Only one has ever found ballet so boring that when I glanced over at her to see her expression, I immediately had a huge spasm of guilt because it appeared that I was torturing her. A couple of others are in the take it or leave it category, but the majority have simply fallen in love with ballet and are always eager to go.

Friday night I had the pleasure of introducing the last two of our 10 grandchildren to the Nutcracker. I confess, I was a little worried about Little Girl, who is 5 -- excuse me, she is 5-1/2, as she will quickly tell you -- anyway, she is quite energetic and can be moody and I was praying that she would be interested and not bored. I didn't need to worry. I have never seen her sit so still for so long. She was simply enchanted. The rats and soldiers draw lobby duty at intermission and pose for pictures with children. After the performance, you can go to the Green Room and meet the soloists from the performance. Here are some pictures from the evening:




You think maybe they had fun? Technically, by blood, these are the Professor's grandchildren, but he is off on a dive trip and missed Thanksgiving and the ballet. On the subject of travel and holidays, we agree to disagree, and I'm sure we each secretly think the other's priorities are totally screwed up. But looking at a bunch of fish and coral that will still be there a few weeks or months from now vs. witnessing your granddaughter's first ballet? I certainly know who got the better end of that deal!