Sibling Trauma

Puffy down vest, sturdy footwear—the choreographer looks well-prepared as he steps forward for the final applause. But what awaits him is perhaps a real surprise: no boos, no angry hisses, but thunderous applause for Marco Goecke, Basel's new ballet director, and the fabulous dancers who brought his Nussknacker to life. Such acclaim is by no means a given. For whether, after the successful long-term era of Richard Wherlock and the equally well-crafted interregnum of Adolphe Binder, the Prince of Darkness, Marco Goecke, would now succeed on the Upper Rhine, was not a foregone conclusion. Artistic Director Benedikt von Peter took a risk with his appointment—​​and he was right to do so. For Der Nussknacker, a Basel remake and far removed from Goecke's debut production staged at the Stuttgart ...