Whatever!

(Item for “Whatever!” column published in Lavender Magazine, Issue #168, November 2, 2001)

Another Barbie “Nutcracker”? The holidays just wouldn’t be complete without Ballet of the Dolls’ annual presentation of their delightfully twisted Barbie-and-Ken version of “Nutcracker?!” Now Mattel, aided by Disney, presents “Barbie in The Nutcracker,” her first full-length, motion-capture, computer-animated direct-to-video feature, available in VHS and DVD. Is it just coincidence that people from both Mattel and Disney have been seen in the audience at the Dolls’ annual presentations? And is Mattel now working on their own version of the Ballet of the Dolls’ “Naughty Nutcracker”? The answer to both questions is: Probably not.