`Nutcracker` is back with spruced-up digs

The former New York State Theater at Lincoln Center has two new side aisles.

New York: News doesn`t come often to the Land of Sweets, that delectable place where the Sugarplum Fairy has reigned supreme since 1954 in George Balanchine`s famous "Nutcracker" at New York City Ballet.But this year, there are two new developments — and no, the lovely fairy hasn`t broken up with her Cavalier, and the Mouse King doesn`t suddenly win that battle against the prince, either.

First, it`s a whole lot easier to get to your seat with a small child, and to escape if that child suddenly gets restless, hungry or loud. The former New York State Theater at Lincoln Center has two new, much-needed side aisles, making navigation easier for everyone, young and old. Everything has been spruced up in what`s now called the David H. Koch Theater, after the financier who donated $100 million to see it happen. There are new seats, carpeting and lighting, not to mention a cool lift that allows the orchestra to rise up and see the audience (and vice versa). There are also improved acoustics, a huge benefit to the New York City Opera, which shares the space. But there`s more news on the Nutcracker front. American Ballet Theatre, not content to let the City Ballet version dominate the hearts of New York`s children, recently announced it will launch its own "Nutcracker" next winter, at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. It will be staged by one of the world`s top choreographers, Alexei Ratmansky, former artistic director of the Bolshoi Ballet. Will this create a bitter rivalry between the boroughs, a battle of toy soldiers, marzipan shepherdesses and dewdrops? It`s too soon to tell. As for the current "Nutcracker," it`s still packing them in after more than a half-century. Balanchine`s magic formula — his own classic choreography, soaring Tchaikovsky music and a wonderfully instinctive way of using children — has not lost its potency. There might have been a little something strange in the backstage water fountain on Thursday, though, because two dancers fell splat on the floor during the performance, one in the first act, one in the second. It`s sometimes beneficial to see dancers fall — it shows they`re human and that the steps are actually hard work, every time. (It also made one wonder: If dancers fall on solid ground, how DO those lovely Snowflakes dance night after night on piles of confetti and never fall?) The lead roles, though, were danced without a hitch, and beautifully — especially by the warm and lovely Tiler Peck as the Sugarplum Fairy. Peck is shaping up to be one of the more exciting dancers on the ballet scene: She dances with style, control and an instinctive sense of where the music is leading her. And her fresh, unforced smile lights up the auditorium. Joaquin de Luz made a dashing partner as the Cavalier, and Ashley Bouder was technically proficient as always as Dewdrop. But her performance didn`t seem as fresh or exciting as Peck`s. As for the children, Callie Reiff was a graceful Marie and Colby Clark an adorable Fritz, her brat brother. It was the prince, though — Lance Chantiles-Wertz, with a thick mane of blond curls that reminded one of Antoine de Saint Exupery`s little prince — who had the real acting chops. His mimed version of his battle against the Mouse King was crystal clear, earning justly deserved respect from those yummy citizens of the Land of Sweets. Bureau Report