A QUESTION from a nine-year-old led to internationally-renowned pianist Alexandra Dariescu devising one of the most ambitious classical recitals ever seen on stage.

“I was doing a workshop in Tokyo and one of the children asked me what I thought of when I was playing a recital,” said Alexandra. “That question just stuck in my mind for several months.

“I usually imagine little stories in my head and I wondered if there is a way to convey what I think of to an audience.”

Three years in the making, The Nutcracker and I, by Alexandra Dariescu, which comes to Clitheroe Grand later this month will show that it most definitely is possible to bring those thoughts to life.

It’s an astonishing show featuring Alexandra performing some of Tchaikovsky’s most popular music. She shares the stage with ballerina Desiree Ballantyne, a soloist with the English National Ballet, and a host of animated characters who bring the story to life.

“From the beginning I knew that I wanted something with live music and very cool technology in order to attract a younger generation into the concert hall,” said Alexandra.

“I also knew that I wanted to do it with the Nutcracker as it’s such an iconic story and full of visual elements. But I wanted my own take on the story. At first I didn’t even know if it was possible to have the technology inter-acting live with whatever I or the ballerina did on stage.”

To produce the captivating animations for the production, Alexandra worked with a digital company for two years. Initially six animators were involved in the project but by the end over 30 animators from all over the world were involved.

“Each animation is hand drawn,” said Alexandra. “We didn’t want to use computer animations as hand drawn ones are so much more lifelike.

“For our show which lasts 50 minutes there are over 35,000 individual drawings which is amazing.”

The animations are projected to a large gauze screen on stage which brings them to life.

“It’s a big challenge for me and the ballerina,” said Alexandra, “because what we see is a mirror image of what the audience is looking at.”

Alexandra always envisioned the production as a piano recital which meant that she has had to have a lot of the famous orchestral numbers re-scored.

“I went to Gavin Sutherland, the musical director of the English National Ballet who is a good friend and he arranged a few of the movements for me. I have to say that this is probably the hardest piece of music I have ever had to play; my hands are flying everywhere on the keyboard which is very exciting to watch. I don’t use a score, I always play from memory.”

Getting The Nutcracker and I ready for its first performance was, Alexandra admits, like piecing together a complex puzzle but the results have staggered audiences and critics alike with the show already in demand in Australia, China and this week Alexandra agreed a tour of the United States.

“It is incredible to see promoters wanting to put this on,” she said, “but it is unique. Nothing like this has ever been done before.

“The whole aim for this production was to reach out to the younger generation and perhaps build bridges to those who are new to classical music. So many people would love to go to a performance but are afraid of the etiquette about what they should they wear or how they should behave. I love it when people clap between movements, it’s great. I feel as though they are enjoying it and on journey with me.

“A lot of people talk about classical music dying. It’s never going to die. But we just need to adapt to the 21st century. The society we live in is very visual and it’s about how we can use technology in a positive way.”

The Nutcracker and I, by Alexandra Dariescu ,Clitheroe Grand, Tuesday, July 17. Details from 01200 421599 or www.thegrandvenue.co.uk