2018 Production of Ballet West's THE NUTCRACKER Reveals $3 Million Design Makeover

Ballet West is preparing to unveil its redesigned production of the holiday classic, "The Nutcracker." The highly anticipated production has received a whopping $3 million design renovation for this holiday season.

Artistic director, Adam Sklute, tells the Salt Lake Tribune that the update will maintain the familiar atmosphere of the long-running production created by the company's founder Willam Christensen. and will add "greater vibrancy and whimsy."

Many of the changes to the production set the look of the show back to the 1820's, the era when the ballet's source material, a short novel, received its publication.

Changes to the ballet's costumes will include empire waistlines of the era, rather than the traditional bustles for girls and women, a brand new look for the Nutcracker Prince, and intricate new costumes for the extensive troupe of ballerinas.

The scenery by John Wayne Cook and Dick and Belinda Bird, will also feature new elements, including massive newly painted set canvases, a scene featuring stunning hothouse foliage inside a glass atrium, and a new 3-D spin on the iconic growing Christmas tree

The Nutcracker himself has also received an update with a brand-new model created via a 3-D printer.