Our performance begins with Mother Nature sharing Berkeley Ballet’s Nutcracker story while welcoming all present into the story’s enchanting world.

In this new-and-evolving adaptation, Clara and Charlie begin their adventure at a party filled with families before being invited into the magic of a snowy blizzard by a Nutcracker Bird and Snowy Owl. Their journey continues as they’re welcomed by the Sunlight Fairy and her Sunbeams and inspired by dances from erupting Volcanoes, glittering Constellations, caves of Crystal Gems, a desert filled with Cacti and a Desert Bird, fields of Flowers and a Dew-Drop, and more!

Set to the iconic score by Tchaikovsky, this production features a multi-generational cast, including more than eighty dancers aged 6 to 18 from Berkeley Ballet’s Youth Division, dancers from the Adult Open Division, and professional dancers from the Bay Area and beyond.