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moment from their hard work at rehearsal, Robin to-classical pose, but are Just two kids relaxing after a long the sweat streaming down their faces, strike a not- hard day of being serious workers. The strain and tension of auditions is evident in the faces of the girls above, working to look their best on the Opera House stage last September. Robin is on the far right. Hundreds of Making a dream come true is never easy, and Robin Irwin. 10, of McHenry, has been working five years to achieve something she first dreamed of at the age of 3. That long-ago Christmas, Robin's mother, Mrs. Judith Irwin, took her to see "The Nutcracker" for the first time. pYotn that moment on, Robin wanted to be Clara, the little girl who W*'wonderful fnagle Nutcracker from her mysterious godfather, Herr Drosselmeyer. "Hie Nutcracker," a classic Christmas ballet to Tchaikovsky's •twining music, will be presented every Friday, Saturday and Sunday from Nov. 25 through Friday, Dec. 23, at the historic Woodstock Opera House. For twenty-four performances, Robin will live her dream, for she has been chosen to be Clara, the child who finds her Christmas Eve party transformed into the Kingdom of Sweets, and sees flowers,snowflakes and wonderful characters come to life. Robin, a fifth grader at the Montini Middle school, has not spent these years between the seeds of a wish and real fulfillment just waiting for this opportunity. Studying ballet and character dancing tinder the training of Judith Svalander of Crystal Lake, she has worked from one ciass a week at the age of 5 to several classes a week today. These five years of classes have been rigorous, and have well prepared Robin to face the grueling task of learning and performing a demanding role such as hers, where she is onstage for almost the entire ballet A young dancer, if serious about her training, must work constantly to achieve the perfect turnout, the beautiful foot, the look of ease and ethereal beauty on stage, all while working feverishly at the barre and during center work to master the intricate combinations that ultimately are used by choreographers for their ballets. At auditions, a dancer must be ready to pick up rapid fire commands for combinations and make them look as faultless as possible, as well, and again, Robin's training has helped her to meet this challenge of thinking fast on her feet ana continuing on no matter how overwhelming ^CaritSTSm®^ choreographer of this special Nutcracker," has taken a contemporary approach to this holiday fairy tale, and placed demands on the young»dancers who are usually not a part of traditional versions. His vision of the ballet perfectly elegant rs. Roy >ys with complements the beloved Tchaikovsky score, and the sugarplum Fairy, Snow Queen and Waltz of the flowers make Clara's journey with her Prince Charming unforgettable. Robin's dream-come-true will be unforgettable, too, for aha, along with other children and dancers from Chicago, NewrYork, Libertyville, Woodstock, BamringtofVvCrystaL Lake and man»'other-place**'have worked long, sweaty hours every Friday, Saturday and Sunday since early September to prepare this ballet it Between ballet and character classes during Up week, and endless rehearsing (not to mention school, of course), Robin must And time for squeezing in a little rest and relaxation. To her. though, this schedule is worth it, because she hopes to become a dancer and monographer i she grows up, and works carefully to plan for this profession. Her relaxation cranes when she plans the decor for the tollhouse Meineke of Mel her friends. because, as she says, "The competition to become a dancer is really unbelievable, and it takes so much in the way of absolute perfection, sheer luck and aidless sacrifice to make it Fortunately Robin has excellent training in these rather depressing realities because her dance classes are for those who want to be professionals. Nevertheless, I do want her to have some kind of creative outlet to take her through life, and of course, getting to be the Clara of her dreams is a nice bonus. But really, it's work, work, work all the time for her because such dreams do not come easily." Maybe not, but the little girl whose godfather makes a Christmas tree i a house vanish so that a silvery forest may appear "I be very. s, will have a Christmas memory that will no very, for Clara's very special Aproud McHenry community may share Robin's as Clara, and bring some Christmas magic into their family's I For ticket information call 338-4212 from 9 a.m. to S p.m. and: from 5 to 9 p.m. Interested persons may also write Pantages Productions, Inc., P.O. Box 734, Woodstock. Asleep in a sugarplum Christmas dream, little dees Clara know that some nasty mice are raiding the larder of the house, sampling the goodies left over from the Christmas Eve celebration. The splendid beauties of the Kingdom of Sweets, soon to be part of Clara's adventure, make the treats of the party pale by comparison. Dream on, Clara, for years are the dreams of all children at Christmas. people auditioned, but finally only 46 could be chosen for the MM. - . 7 \ '• - * , . ' • •y>K , . : . . •• '*.->•• " " V .'AY. * ' " ' ' . A DREAM. IN THE MAKING Robert Matthews of Union, right, portrays Herr Drosselmeyer, Clara's godfather, a man with special powers of magic and enchantment Robin Irwin of McHenry, left is Clara, the little girl who receives the wonderful Nutcracker that leads to her Christmas Eve adventure into a most unusual Kingdom of dancing flowers, snowflakes, Spanish Chocolates, Arabian Coffee and Chinese Tee. The Nutcracker ballet will be presented st the Woodstock Opera House every Friday, Saturday and 8anday beginning Nov. 25 and closing Dec. 23. The Nutcracker Suite PAGE 19 - PLAINDEALER - FRIDAY NOVEMBER 25, 1977 M ' ' M > < > * "