Estimated Time: 10 minutes

Welcome to our study of The Nutcracker! Over the next two weeks, we’re going to explore one of the most famous holiday stories ever told. You might know The Nutcracker as a magical ballet with dancing sugarplums, or maybe you’ve seen the beautiful wooden nutcrackers that pop up during the holidays. But did you know this story has a long, winding history that stretches back over 200 years?

The Nutcracker didn’t start as a ballet. It began as a tale written by a German author, E.T.A. Hoffmann, in the early 1800s. Later, a French writer, Alexandre Dumas, rewrote the story to make it more playful and easier for children to enjoy.

But it didn’t stop there! The story was transformed into a ballet by two creative artists—Marius Petipa, who planned the dances, and Pyotr Tchaikovsky, who created the music. At first, the ballet wasn’t very popular, but years later, George Balanchine reimagined it and turned The Nutcracker into the holiday tradition we know today.

Watch this video to get us started on our Nutcracker Adventure!

Have you seen the ballet?