Fine tuning the Nutcracker….

Posted on 31 October 2012 · 3 Comments

As November 4th races towards me, I’m still fine tuning exactly what will take place at the Nutcracker and the Mouse King concert… decisions to make, pastels and paints to try, brushes to experiment with…

I’ve been living with The Nutcracker story now for over a year; Ella Bella Ballerina came first, then the wonderful opportunity to illustrate it all over again, live on stage, with the de Havilland Philharmonic!

Over the last few months, wherever I’ve been, I’ve taken a sketch book and my ipod with me, deciding which pieces from the Nutcracker ballet should be performed, planning what to say and what to paint or draw.

These are early sketches… one or two done whilst at the rehearsals with the orchestra. Others mostly done on trains!

But with all tickets sold, I really must make the big decisions and finally crack it! (did you see what I did there?). What I do know is that there will be 9 pictures raffled off for the London Music Masters – a really worthwhile cause, so if you are coming, don’t forget to buy your raffle tickets before the concert…

Oh and if you didn’t get tickets… don’t worry! There will be ANOTHER Nutcracker concert in London on November 30th… more on that soon.

But for now… wish me luck on Sunday!

Posted in Musical Notes

James Mayhew

James is the creator of the much-loved Katie and Ella Bella Ballerina series and has written or illustrated many other books, including Koshka’s Tales, Mouse & Mole (by Joyce Dunbar) and Gaspard the Fox (by Zeb Soanes). Alongside his work in publishing, James performs live on stage during concerts for children, combining live classical music, storytelling and art.