Performance gift?

[KellyeS]

All three of my daughters will be performing in our studio's Nutcracker in December. In the past, I have given them flowers for all performances. Last year, I added a little wooden Nutcracker (from the dollar store) just for interest.

 

This year, however, I would like to do something meaningful. We switched dance studios over the summer and my two oldest (12 and 10) went en pointe recently. This will be their first performance in pointe shoes and I'd like to give them something after this performance that is meaningful and will last. My 12 yo is Chinese (understudying Waltz/Snow), my 10yo is Clara and my 8yo is an angel and a polichinelle.

 

Does anyone have any ideas for me? Thanks.

Edited October 13, 2006 by KellyeS

[yankee]

I always give my dd a little token to remember her Nutcracker roles by. I have managed to find a little snow globe with Clara holding the Nutcracker, a sheep which amazingly resembled her costume, a gingerbread doll for when she was a Polichinelle, a fan for when she was a Spanish baby doll, etc. This year she is a Party Girl and a Sheep so I will be looking around for something resembling a Party Girl since we've given the sheep gift already.

 

What about a nice Chinese fan for your 12 yo, a Clara doll for your 10 yo and an angel pin for your 8 yo?

[Tuesday]

I get my 11 yr old DS a different nutcracker each year as a gift, and I have decided as his roles get bigger, so will the nutcrackers. I write the year and his role on the underside of the base. I figure he'll have a pretty good collection of them by the time he's a grown up! There are so many different kinds of nutcrackers, its fun to look at them all.

 

Another thing I think would be neat to collect are the various nutcracker storybooks.

 

DS also likes to get a nutcracker sweatshirt each year, but he buys that with his own money at the show.

[Tiffany]

knock, knock, not a parent, please delete if needed.

 

I have a charm bracelet so my parents would give me charms for some of my roles in ballets. I also have charms from family vacations (like when we saw manatees in Florida) and charms that are just fun. I have a snowflake charm from snow in Nut., drama masks from a play I danced in, a little ballerina, a mouse (from a different ballet than Nut.), a fairy for Sleeping Beauty, etc. One of my charms is a plain circle with the title of my role & my name engraved on one side and then the name of the ballet & the date engraved on the other side. This charm bracelet started out empty so I have added to it as I have gone along, but I have another charm bracelet that had ballerinas in the 5 arm positions already attached...its really pretty and not as noisy as the other bracelet!

[KellyeS]

I had a charm bracelet as a teenager that we did the same thing with. I can't remember how old I was when my parents started that. Is that something that has great meaning for you? My 12yo is also in drama at school and I can imagine giving her charms for those roles as well.

 

[edited by moderator to remove complete quote of immediately preceding post.]

Edited October 13, 2006 by dancemaven

[Guest pink tights]

Last year I gave my Dd a Nutcracker prince charm to add to her bracelet. This year, I will probably give her a little flower. When I find interesting charms, I buy them and put them aside for future gifts.

 

Aside from the charm bracelet, a monogramed silver frame is nice.

[dancingjet]

I love the charm bracelet idea. I may have to start one for DD.

[sgmca]

Here's an idea for something unique and personal... I have had 3 shoes made for my daughter, two from two of her years in Nut, and one from her YAGP performance, and my daughter absolutely loves them! Her YAGP tutu was beautiful and the pointe shoe looks exactly like it.

 

http://www.pointetoremember.com/home.htm

[balletgirlsmadre]

I do the charm bracelet for my daughter to mark dance recitals as well as other imprtant events. It's amazing the variety of charms out there. Last year, she danced in Russian and we gave her a little tamborine. Like Tiffany, my daughter's charm bracelet contains charms from her travels as well as charms that represent other interests like violin and lacrosse.

[kathryn56]

*Knock knock*

My daughter is older, but for her nutcracker roles we also did the charm bracelet. We got the role-specific charms fron nutcrackerjewelry.com and were very happy with them (charms are gold or sterling and are cheaper the earlier you order them). "Costume jewelry" charms for some of the roles are available from nutcrackerballetgifts.com . I have ordered from both places and really liked them. For all of my daughters when they were younger, I made costumes for their American girl dolls that matched theirballet costumes.

[FairyofMine]

Each year I give dd a Christmas tree ornament that represents her role in the Nutcracker. So far she has a reindeer, a tiny glass ribbon candy, nutcracker, a beautiful porcelain ballerina, and a miniature pointe shoe. This year she is Marie and I can't wait to shop for her ornament! I pack them away each year in a seperate box and there is always the excitement of opening her ornaments again to place on the tree.

[housell]

In Texas we have a wonderful jewelery chain called James Avery that has a web site now and is also in a couple of other states. They have very affordable sterling charms and also gold but it's pricey. Anyway, many in our state do the charm bracelet thing for their daughters as a tradition. I've been doing the same thing for her performances. If you haven't started yet, check out this jeweler. It's very high quality and they have charms for EVERYTHING you can think of.

[101driver]

I'm considering personalized M&Ms for my DD's dressing room. They're pricy but soooo cute (you can choose the color and message - so you could coordinate with the role). Here's the link:

 

My M&Ms

[balletbooster]

The charms are great! My daughter's bracelet is full and it is really pretty too. I also did the Christmas ornaments and my daughter now has enough to fill a full size tree, with the ones I've given her and those she has received as gifts. I figure when she is out on her own, she will have the best looking tree around, as buying Christmas decorations on a limited budget is usually not a high priority for young adults! Midwest Imports has a great line of ornaments with all of the ballet characters, including those hard to find Russian, Arabian and Chinese roles in approprite ballet poses.

 

When she was young, she had a group of four friends who all exchanged gifts at Nutcracker time and the moms searched high and low for unusual items that went along with their roles that year. When they were marzipan, one mom got them all those soft fleece blankets that looked like ribbon candy and went along with the look of their costumes. That has been a useful gift! Another year when they were in snow corp, I found these snowflake dolls that sing Let it Snow, Let it Snow at the drug store.

 

Another really fun collection to begin is enamel and/or porcelain boxes. There are several companies who do Christmas themes and one that does all the main characters in the Nutcracker.

 

Ginger snap is always a fun one to buy for. I saw some really cute soap dispensers at KMart yesterday that were in the shape of metallic gingerbread men and really cute. My daughter received numerous cute ginger gifts when she did that role.

 

As for Clara, that is a special role and one that deserves a special memory. Take a look at the Clara Nutcrackers. Some are really pretty, others make Clara look a little scary... I got a really neat table top decoration at Dillards the year my daughter did this role. I have seen it there in subsequent years, so maybe they are still making it. It is a stage that has curtains that open and close for 5-6 scenes from the Nutcracker, that turn inside on a spindle. It plays the appropriate music for each dance and the characters move back and forth. It is really cool and everyone that comes to the house during the holiday season has to turn it on and watch the show!

[msd]

Knock, knock...mom of an older dancer...

 

But NUT is sooo much fun to "memorialize". Like others, dd has a charm bracelet w/all performing roles. (In fact, this year I've got to get her a bigger bracelet and have the old charms moved -- she's finally just about outgrown the child's length...and she's out of room). The charms from nutcrackerjewelrey.com are great! (Also check ebay and bluemud.com for less expensive options.)

 

Dd has always gotten an ornament for the tree, since her first Christmas. The last 5 have been correlated to her roles. (Another good time to check ebay! This year, she's a big mouse, and I was able to find a really cute Nutcracker mouse ornament there!)

 

Finally, she always gets a Nutcracker or similar, either from the company's merchandise table (generally on the last night, when stuff is on clearance!) or other desired item. A year she was a drum/soldier, she got a drum snowglobe that flipped up to show a Nutcracker. She has a party girl doll...etc.

 

All these mementoes are very special to the kids as they grow and remember their roles. I also discovered just this year, that as soon as she's got her casting, she always pulls out and reads "A Very Young Dancer" (story of kids performing in Nutcracker) as well as all her other Nut books.

 

Have fun!