The Nutcracker is a ballet in two acts, with choreography by Leo Ivanov and music by Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Little Clara falls asleep with the nutcracker her godfather gave her tucked under her arm. It is Christmas Eve early in the 19th Century. As the snow quietly falls outside, Clara dreams. She sees everything in the room grow to monumental size, even the mice! An army of mice, led by their fierce Mouse King, overpowers the defending toy soldiers and turns toward Clara. Clara watches in disbelief as her nutcracker, grown to life size, first defeats the mice then turns into a handsome prince. The prince takes Clara on an amazing journey through a snowy forest to his Kingdom of Sweets. 
Based on the story The Nutcracker and the Mouse King, by E.T.A. Hoffmann, the Nutcracker Ballet was first performed in 1892 in St. Petersburg (now Leningrad), Russia. The well-known Nutcracker Suite by Tchaikovsky is 
a selection of outstanding numbers from the score of the ballet.
Some interesting pages about the Nutcracker :
The Nutcracker of the Kirov Ballet.
The Nutcracker of the Bolshoi Ballet.
The Nutcracker of the Boston Ballet.
The Nutcracker Story.
A great Nutcracker page.
About the Composer :
Our page about Tchaikovsky.
Tchaikovsky's page at Midiworld.
A bit about him at the Kirov page.
About Ballet :
A page with more Ballet links.
Our Ballet-Page.
