{"product_id":"9780306903274","title":"Raising the Barre: Big Dreams, False Starts, and My Midlife Quest to Dance the Nutcracker","description":"\u003cp\u003eLike generations of little girls, Lauren Kessler fell in love with ballet the first time she saw \u003ci\u003eThe Nutcracker\u003c\/i\u003e, and from that day, at age five, she dreamed of becoming a ballerina. But when she was twelve, her very famous ballet instructor crushed those dreams—along with her youthful self-assurance—and she stepped away from the barre.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFast forward four decades. Lauren—suddenly, powerfully, itchingly restless at midlife—embarks on a “Transcontinental \u003ci\u003eNutcracker\u003c\/i\u003e Binge Tour,” where attending a string of performances in Chicago, New York, Boston, and San Francisco reignites her love affair with the ballet—and fuels her girlhood dream.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhat ensues is not only a story about \u003ci\u003eThe Nutcracker\u003c\/i\u003e itself, but also an inside look at the seemingly romantic—but oh-so-gritty—world of ballet, about all that happens away from the audience's eye that precedes the magic on stage. It is a tale told from the perspective of someone who not only loves it, but is also seeking to live it. Lauren's quest to dance \u003ci\u003eThe Nutcracker\u003c\/i\u003e with the Eugene Ballet Company tackles the big issues: fear, angst, risk, resilience, the refusal to “settle in” to midlife, the refusal to become yet another Invisible Woman. It is also a very funny, very real look at what it's like to push yourself further than you ever thought you could go—and what happens when you get there.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Da Capo Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50108098478320,"sku":"9780306903274","price":15.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9780306903274","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}