Tchaikovsky - The Nutcracker / Vassiliev, Maximova, Bolshoi Ballet | 
 enlarge | Director: Yuri Grigorovich
Actors: The Bolshoi Ballet, Ekaterina Maksimova, Nadia Pavlova, Vladimir Vasilyev, Viktor Levashev
Studio: Empire Musicwerks
Category: DVD
List Price: $14.98
Buy New: $3.99
You Save: $10.99 (73%)
New (3) Used (4) from $2.69
Rating:  5 reviews
Sales Rank: 80023
Format: Ac-3, Classical, Color, Dolby, Dvd-video, Ntsc
Language: English (Original Language)
Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Number Of Items: 1
Running Time: 98
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 7.4 x 5.3 x 0.6
UPC: 654545059292
EAN: 0654545059292
ASIN: B0000D1FLN
Theatrical Release Date: 1978
Release Date: October 14, 2003
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Similar Items:
| • | The Nutcracker / Baryshnikov, Kirkland, Charmoli | | • | George Balanchine's The Nutcracker | | • | Tchaikovsky - The Nutcracker / Maximova, Vasiliev, Bolshoi | | • | Tchaikovsky - The Nutcracker (1989) / Natalya Arkhipova, Irek Mukhamedov, Yuri Vetrov, Andrei Sitnikov, Ilze Liepa, Alexander Kopilov, Bolshoi | | • | Tchaikovsky - The Sleeping Beauty / Semizorova, Fadeyechev, Speranskaya, Kopilov, Bolshoi Ballet |
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| Customer Reviews:
 4 Stars for the performance vs 2 Stars for the audio/video = 3 Stars September 26, 2008
I agree with what else has been written here except for the comment that the Kultur Video (different cover picture, same performance, from 1978 like this one) is to be preferred to this one. They're both awful in terms of audio and video quality. I've written a longer review under the Kultur Video release description.
In a nutshell, the Kultur Video release is terribly DARK and the sound quality thin and distant. Very little additional effort when into reworking that original here.
To address the darkness they ramped up the brightness which -- to quote the Geico commercial on tv -- is so easy, a caveman could do it. Well, they did it, and it does at least make it possible to see what's going on, so that's a plus.
On the other hand, they made the sound quality even worse. They took the thin, distant original sound and smothered it with Dolby which makes it worse. And yes there are frequent dropouts in sound which is annoying and inexpllcable since they're not on the Kultur release. So they made the sound even worse! (not easy to do considering the original).
Still, the fact that you can see more of what's going on makes this release preferable to the Kultur video release. Both are lousy for audio and video but the performance remains special, for me anyway. My review of the performance (and more audio/video carping) can found under the Kultur video release with the title "A Flawed Nutcracker for and by Adults" or something like that :-)
One last thing to consider. At $5 or less I still consider these DVDs (don't buy the VHS by mistake) a bargain... IF ...you can look and listen past the lousy audio & video, though i wouldn't blame those who simply can't.
Good...if you are a ballet history buff. August 25, 2006
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
This performance is so badly filmed that it's hard to enjoy the dancing. The level of sophistication is actually close to what one would expect from a couple of cameras at a High School performance. My goal is to find a performance of the Nutcracker with a little more thought gone into its production.
 Terribly filmed August 29, 2004
8 out of 9 found this review helpful
I agree that this is a dismal DVD. The original filming is much of the problem, with the performance either not properly staged for film or the director having no idea how to capture ballet. Much of the time the feet of the performers are lopped off, and the overall effect is claustrophobic. Whatever was done to (supposedly) make this 5.1 Dolby wasn't beneficial. Oddly, quite frequently there is a silent momentary hiccup in the disc.
A disgraceful release of a legendary performance March 1, 2004
10 out of 10 found this review helpful
First of all, the low rating is entirely for this particular DVD issue, NOT for the performance. The legendary Maximova-Vasiliev/Bolshoi "Nutcracker" has seen various VHS and now DVD releases over the years. This is undoubtedly one of the worst I ever came across. The editing is simply a disgrace. In the first Act white spots start appearing all over the screen and on a couple of places entire seconds of footage are missing. The sound has never been much to write home about and nothing has been attempted to improve it for this DVD. (Don't believe it is dolby surround, as the cover pretends.) The presentation is zero. The same performance has also been released by Kultur Video on VHS and DVD, and has to be preferred to this one.
 Old but great performance November 22, 2003
33 out of 35 found this review helpful
I bought this DVD for my parents who used to live in Moscow and frequently attended performances in the Bolshoi Theater. I was not sure what to expect from this DVD since the other Nutcracker DVD recordings were more recent (this one dates back to 1978), yet the Bolshoi is world famous. As it turns out, the performance itself is great. The sound quality is good and the picture quality is typical for color recordings from the seventies: the screen is permanently covered by a slight blue haze. Also, every five minutes or so the sound stalls for a split second. Moral of the story: if you're looking for something nice for the kids then you are better off buying George Balanchine's Nutcracker. If you are looking for a great classical performance by the Bolshoi Theatre and don't mind the slightly inferior picture quality and the periodically stalling sound then this DVD is for you.
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