Texas Ballet Theater presents Holiday Classic THE NUTCRACKER

Texas Ballet Theater (TBT) presents the annual holiday classic, The Nutcracker, featuring a twist this year, a dancer swap with the Queensland Ballet in Australia.

The result of a collaboration between Ben Stevenson, O.B.E., Artistic Director for TBT and Li Cunxin, Artistic Director for Queensland Ballet, dancers from each company will switch places for two performances. Samantha Pille and Jiyan Dai will travel to Australia the week of Dec. 16 and Yanela Pinera and Camilo Ramos will perform the roles of Sugar Plum Fairy and Nutcracker Prince on Dec. 20 and 22 at Bass Performance Hall with the rest of the cast from TBT.

A classical ballet in two acts, based on E.T.A. Hoffman's tale of The Nutcracker and the Mouse King (1816). It is the traditional story as brought to life by Ben Stevenson, O.B.E., Artistic Director for TBT, featuring music by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The show includes special effects including dry ice to create a magical mist during the snow scene, as well as set pieces that fly through Clara's dreamland. Students from Texas Ballet Theater School audition and play the children roles on stage at the performances.

The full-length, kid-friendly ballet lasts approximately two hours and includes a 20-minute intermission. A "Wiggle Room" is available for restless children to play while still watching the performance via a screen. Certain performances feature a Kingdom of Sweets with crafts, story time with a ballerina and other activities one hour prior to show time (free with ticket to the ballet). Other performances have a VIP add-on opportunity for a backstage tour, drink tickets and special gift (additional cost to participate in this).

Tickets range from $20-$115 and are available at www.texasballettheater.org or 877-828-9200. Performances are at Winspear Opera House at AT&T Performing Arts Center in Dallas (Nov. 24-26, Dec. 1-3) and at Bass Performance Hall in Fort Worth (Dec. 8-10, 14, 16-17, 20-24).