The New Jersey Dance Theatre Ensemble will perform "The Nutcracker" as the inaugural performance at the new 1,000-seat East Brunswick Performing Arts Center. The performance will christen the new theater and bring the classic ballet to the local community. A North Brunswick native, Jessica Batten, will return to perform the role of the Sugar Plum Fairy. The performances are fundraisers for the local school district and will expose young dancers to professional performances.

1. Ensemble's 'Nutcracker' to christen new theater | suburban.gmnews.com | Suburban 6/15/10 9:56 PM
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BY JACQUELINE DURETT Correspondent
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The holiday season will come alive on stage next week when the New Jersey Dance Theatre Ensemble
brings "The Nutcracker" to East Brunswick.
The classic Christmas fairy tale ballet will be the inaugural performance at
the new 1,000-seat East Brunswick Performing Arts Center at Hammarskjold
Middle School, Rues Lane.
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Online Obituary "We were very excited when they approached us about opening the theater,"
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said Nancy Turano, artistic director of the NJDTE, adding that the ensemble's
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former business director, Nancy Paulson, served as liaison to bringing the
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company back to East Brunswick.
"It's a beautiful facility," said Trish La- Duca, the school district's director of
community relations and programs, adding that the last time the ensemble
performed "The Nutcracker" locally was 2004. "It was time to bring it back."
Bringing in the NJDTE also furthers the school district's academic goals, said
Jeff Lesser, supervisor of arts education for the East Brunswick school
North Brunswick native Jessica district.
Batten, seen in a previous
"Nutcracker" performance,
"Everything that we're bringing in has an educational purpose," he said,
returns to the New Jersey Dance
Theatre Ensemble as a guest artist adding that the district places a heavy emphasis on the arts and offers theater,
in the role of Sugar Plum Fairy dance, music and visual arts classes. "[This is] a great cultural event."
for the upcoming shows in East
Brunswick. She grew up dancing Next year, the theater will welcome New York Voices and the Dallas Brass,
with the ensemble and now according to Lesser.
dances with Ballet Hispanico in
New York City.
The NJDTE, currently 50 strong, features young dancers 18 and younger
from all over the state.
"I don't even want to say [they're] kids, because they're so professional," Turano said, adding that the
company performs at a number of different theaters, including those at Drew University in Madison and
Kean University in Union. The travel requires a great deal of the young dancers, but in exchange they
receive high-level training in classical and contemporary ballet, and get to work with world-renowned
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choreographers such as Twyla Tharp. These young dancers all dream of a career in the arts, Turano said,
adding, "They're not just young people who say, 'Ooh, I like to dance.'"
About Us Working with youngsters is very gratifying for Turano, a
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Woodbridge native who said she would rather work with
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young dancers who have much more to learn about the
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2. Ensemble's 'Nutcracker' to christen new theater | suburban.gmnews.com | Suburban 6/15/10 9:56 PM
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company. She recalled when she first fell in love with
ballet and knew she wanted to pursue it as a career:
watching a performance of "Sleeping Beauty" as a
youngster.
Copyright© "There are a lot of young people who have great
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Batten, a North Brunswick native who, in a guest dancer
role, will be performing the role of the Sugar Plum Fairy.
Batten, who danced with the NJDTE from age 9 until
she went to college at SUNY Purchase, now dances with the Ballet Hispanico company in New York.
Newspaper web site "I grew up with the ensemble," Batten said. "It's an honor to come back."
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Though Batten has danced "The Nutcracker" many times with the NJDTE, she said she's always looking to
grow as an artist.
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Logout "I hope to bring something different to it," she said, adding that the theater's proximity to her hometown is
an added benefit, since it will enable much of her family to attend.
According to Turano, Batten is a great example to those currently in the NJDTE. "It's nice for [them] to
see her; [they] say, 'Wow, someone from this area has really made it big."
Because "The Nutcracker" will be the first major performance at the new performing arts center, the
school district will benefit from the experience and insights of a high-caliber dance company. Lesser said
the NJDTE has been able to give the district advice in regards to last-minute adjustments to the theater,
such as moving curtains. Those kinds of changes "would be major issues if they weren't corrected," Lesser
said, but he is confident everything will be ready by opening night.
The NJDTE is optimistic about ticket sales for "The Nutcracker." The main section of the theater holds
about 550 seats, and two side wings can be opened when needed.
"We are hoping that we will have an audience that needs that," said Karin Engel, NJDTE's business
director. Strong ticket sales will benefit the school district as well, as the show is a fundraiser for the East
Brunswick Educational Foundation, which awards grants to teachers, administrators, student clubs and
parent-teacher organizations.
"It's a win-win," LaDuca said.
Performances of "The Nutcracker" are at 2 p.m. Dec. 6 and 7. Tickets cost $25 at the door; $20 in advance.
For reservations, visit www.ebef.org or call 732-254-3233.
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