Running Time: Approximately 90-120 mins, 88 pgs.

Cast: 9 M, 12 F, 10 flexible (With Doubling: 8 M, 8 F, 8 flexible)

HOLIDAY CLASSIC. Introduce your audiences to the original story of the Nutcracker with this adaptation, which is based on the novella by E.T.A. Hoffman, The Nutcracker and the Mouse King, and incorporates elements from the story by Alexandre Dumas and the ballet by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. It’s Christmas Eve and Marie’s godfather gives her a nutcracker for Christmas. Marie takes an immediate liking to the nutcracker and is dismayed when her brother Fritz breaks the nutcracker’s jaw. Later that night when the rest of the family has gone to bed, Marie goes to check on the nutcracker and he magically comes to life along with the other dolls in the toy cabinet. Soon the Mouse Queen and her mouse army arrive to exact revenge on the Nutcracker. With the help of toy soldiers, the Nutcracker defeats the Mouse Queen and her army in battle and whisks Marie away to the magical Kingdom of the Dolls, which is guarded by fairies. There, the Nutcracker presents the Mouse Queen’s crown to Princess Pirlipat, hoping to end the curse that has plagued them both. This imaginative, fantastical play is sure to delight audiences of all ages.