Ballet Jörgen's Tara Butler exudes theatre in ballet through her many roles from Cinderella and The SPF, to her fave role as Juliet in Romeo and Juliet.

In this interview series Ballet Jörgen's principcal ballerina talks about all of her roles from Nutcracker's Sugar Plum Fairy and Juliet in Romeo and Juliet to her exciting new title role in Anastasia. She also talks about the future of ballet in Canada. She spoke from Ballet Jörgen earlier this month.

Right now Tara Butler is on tour reprising her annual role as The Sugar Plum Fairy in Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker – a role she's been dancing since 1995. Everyone knows the enchanting tale of the Nutcracker, Klara, The Land of Sweets and The Prince. Generations of families have watched it as a tradition from one Christmas to the next. For many young dancers to be, it's an introduction to ballet – often a life-changing experience.

Though Butler has been dancing in The Nutcracker for many years, the beauty and the magic of this holiday classic is rejeuvenated for her and the Ballet Jörgen company each passing year through the fresh new faces on stage dancing with them.

I didn't know you started out as Klara.

"Yes, that was way back in the day – 1986, 87… when I was training at the National Ballet School."

What advice would you give to all Klaras starting out?

"Just to try to stay calm before the show. I remember as a kid getting very nervous but also getting very excited, and really the kids help us so much because they are so excited to do this every year. The older dancers in the company have done a lot of years of Nutcracker, so it’s not always the most exciting prospect. But the kids really bring the magic, so we just try to let them be and enjoy themselves and feed off their energy."

You have been doing this a long time, since 1995..

"Oh way before that really. About two years with the National Ballet doing Nutcracker and then two years with Alberta Ballet. I have been doing this current version of Nutcracker since 1995."

How many performances as the Sugar Plum Fairy do you figure you’ve done?

"I’ve guess I’ve done a least 15 a year since 1995. It’s a lot."

That’s a heck of a lot. So what are the kids like for this year's show?

"They are great. A couple of the kids we have actually worked with before, and they are very comfortable with us so that makes it easier for them and there are some new faces as well, so we have some new blood. The kids are so excited to be a part of it and they are very well behaved children, which makes it fun for us."

Are you going "Nutcrackers" yet? Wasn’t the whole of November Nutcracker shows?

"We had two weeks of rehearsal and so far have performed several shows of Nutcracker. Our schedule is better than it usually is because we have longer stints in each place so that makes it a lot less exhausting. We are not having to unpack and pack everything up every single night which is really a nice change so this week we are in Mississauga for four days in a row at The Living Arts Centre. It is much less stressful. We haven’t quite gone that Nut-Crazy yet but I am sure it will happen."

You play a lot of different halls. How long does it take to adapt to them all? You are at River Run in Guelph, Centre in the Square in Kitchener, and the Mississauga's Living Arts Centre.

"All three of these stages are similar and quite large which always makes it easier. It’s when the stages get really small that it is more difficult to fit the choreography and to create the same spacing effects that we have to each time and to negotiate how much space we actually have. That’s much harder in a smaller space. So those three stages are probably the company’s favourite spaces because they are nice and big and there is a lot of wing space. A lot of choreography happens backstage because there are so many props and so many costume changes so we need a lot of extra room."

What’s the fastest change in the show?

"The fastest change in the show is probably Klara because she comes off stage for a party scene and goes into battle and she is the first person to enter for battle so she has about a minute not even. I help her change every night. She walks off stage and she’s got everything under her dress and then she’s ready to go into the next scene, so it’s a quick one. I would say about 30 seconds."

That’s great that you are there to help..

"That’s one nice thing because so many of us have done this production we help the kids and the new company members adjust to what has to happen in order for the show to progress."

How many are in the cast?

We’ve got 16 full-time dancers, a couple of apprentices who are also joining us, and then there are the kids."

It’s a big cast…

"Yes it is and everyone does more than one role and everyone is quick changing all the time."

Have you ever done three shows in a row?

"Yes, I have. It was exhausting. There was one year because of injuries that we had one cast of Sugar Plum Fairies so did 25 performances over the course of a month and it was intense. I am a little older now so I don’t think I could do that again. It’s about quality not quantity anymore." Butler laughs.

In the next piece, Tara Butler talks about maintaining physical stamina and the similarities between playing Anastasia and Juliet.

To find out more about the current The Nutcracker tour and the company repertoire, visit Ballet Jörgen.