Alexei Ratmansky’s new production sparkles, even when viewed from the back of the orchestra pit.

The first thing I noticed as I was ushered to my perch in the State Theatre’s orchestra pit was the vastness of the auditorium and my seeming insignificance therein. Wearing blacks for the occasion, with the audience’s focus clearly on the stage, there’s a reassuring anonymity. We might peer out, but few will take the time to peer in. As I looked up at the chattering folk above I felt distinctly ant-like in comparison. And I don’t know why I’d assumed I would be able to watch the dancers as well since it immediately became clear that, along with the other musicians, I’d be listening blind.

The second thing that struck me was the almost deliberately inconvenient shape of the thing. Tucked away far stage left next to the tuba and timpani the pit stretched away farther than my eye could see. Beyond the centrally placed woodwind was an imagined string section far stage right and beyond that, as I was told, a grand piano and more percussion. The depth on the other hand was miniscule in comparison. Clearly any conductor hoping to control...