cast:

SYNOPSIS

Prologue

It is Christmas Eve. Clara and her mother are visiting the toy shop owned by the girl's godfather, Drosselmeyer. Clara finds the toys delightful, but her mother urges her to leave, as she doesn't want to be late for the Christmas party. At Clara's home, everything is nearly ready for the party. The hustle and bustle in the kitchen is dying down. Clara's father drops in to taste everything personally.

Act I

Scene 1, The Christmas party at Clara's home has begun. The guests and children gather in the parlour. Drosselmeyer arrives, and using his magic powers lights up the Christmas tree with thousands of lights. The children are joined by Clara's brother, a cadet, who has come home for Christmas with two of his friends. The children dance a lively polka, and the parents - a wild galop. Drosselmeyer interrupts the fun, wanting to give the children their presents. They receive mysterious mechanical toys, Clara - a doll, and her brother - a toy soldier. The gifts delight everyone, and when the children slowly lose interest in the presents, Drosselmeyer brings out one more surprise. It is a Nutcracker. Clara is delighted with this new toy, and would like to keep it to herself. But her brother tries to take away the Nutcracker and deliberately destroys its mechanism. Drosselmeyer comforts the little girl and tries to repair the toy. The children are tired by now, and the parents give the signal for the final dance.

Scene 2. During the night, Clara creeps into the parlour to take another look at her broken toy. The clock strikes midnight, and a suspicious rustling is heard. The terrified girl notices mice surrounding her. The Nutcracker comes to her rescue, helped by Clara's brother and his friends. A battle is fought. When the mice seem to be winning, Clara calls Drosselmeyer for help. The Queen of Snow arrives and creates a snowstorm. The terrified mice run for their lives, led by their King. After his rescue, the Nutcracker turns into a handsome young prince. Everyone joins the Queen of Snow on a journey to her fantasy winter kingdom.

Act II

Scene 3. Preparations are under way for Clara and the Prince's engagement. The Mouse King again tries to stand in the lovers' way. But Clara can always count on her godfather to come to her aid. Once again Drosselmeyer appears, and again defeats the Mouse King. The first beats of the waltz of the flowers are heard, and the dance ends with the lovers' lyrical declaration of devotion. Drosselmeyer now takes all of Clara's guests on a distant and exotic journey - to Spain, the Middle East, China and Russia. Clara is in such a hurry that she forgets her wedding veil. When she returns to fetch it, she finds that the mice haven't given up. The unfortunate girl falls into their trap. The train carrying the travellers pulls away, as Clara wakes up from her incredible Christmas dream.