Musicians Decry "Nutcracker" Canned Music

(Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO)

The Washington Ballet is planning to serve up "canned" music at "The Nutcracker" ballet again this year, reports the local musician's union. Nutcracker patrons "will be paying full price for half the product," says D.C. Federation of Musicians Local 161-710 President John Cusick. Union members last week unanimously rejected a proposed contract after the Ballet dropped the live orchestra from upcoming holiday performances of "The Nutcracker." The union maintains that "the Ballet has chosen to present an inferior product at premium prices and has squandered a tradition of introducing the youth of our community to the magic of live music and dance." The live music was dropped last year for the first time in 34 years. – photo by Carol Pratt/The Washington Post