Posted on 11/27/2025 2:46:24 PM PST by CondoleezzaProtege
Here are 10 historical fun facts about the beloved holiday ballet that will have sugarplums dancing in your head!
1. Although The Nutcracker first premiered in the United States in 1944 by San Francisco Ballet, it didn’t gain popularity until ten years later with George Balanchine’s version. By the 1960s, the ballet became a holiday essential across the country.
2. Tchaikovsky died shortly after the original 1892 production in Russia, never knowing the long-lasting impression of his work. He also considered it one of his worst works, thinking The Sleeping Beauty was far superior.
3. In German folklore, it is believed that nutcrackers protect your family and bring your home good luck.
4. The original fairy tale, The Nutcracker and the Mouse King, written by E.T.A Hoffman, and was much darker and bloodier than the ballet you see on stage today. Hoffman wanted it to show humanity’s dark-sided nature and was definitely not a child-friendly story. In fact, the battle of mice and soldiers was inspired by an invasion by Napoleon.
5. The Nutcracker premiered on December 18, 1892, to a sold-out show at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia. Sadly, the ballet was not received well and was heavily criticized.
6. Marius Petipa, the original choreographer of The Nutcracker, reflected the French Revolution through a variety of metaphors and parables throughout his work.
7. The heroine in The Nutcracker was not always named Clara. In Hoffman’s original story, she was called Maria or Marie, who had a doll named Clara. In some German versions, she was named, Marichen, and after World War I in Russia, she was renamed, Masha.
8. The instrument called the “celesta” was introduced to Russia by Tchaikovsky. Its unique water drop sound is heard during The Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy. A celesta is like a piano, but instead of strings, it has metallic plates. Tchaikovsky kept this instrument a secret, hiding it from other composers, so they wouldn’t steal his work until the premiere of the ballet.
9. American audiences were first introduced to Tchaikovsky’s score for The Nutcracker with Disney’s 1940 animated film, Fantasia.
10. A collection of scripts, made up of Marius Petipas’ choreographic notations, music, designs for costumes, theater programs, and more are kept at Harvard University.
Dear FRiends,
We need your continuing support to keep FR funded. Your donations are our sole source of funding. No sugar daddies, no advertisers, no paid memberships, no commercial sales, no gimmicks, no tax subsidies. No spam, no pop-ups, no ad trackers.
If you enjoy using FR and agree it's a worthwhile endeavor, please consider making a contribution today:
Click here: to donate by Credit Card
Or here: to donate by PayPal
Or by mail to: Free Republic, LLC - PO Box 9771 - Fresno, CA 93794
Thank you very much and God bless you,
Jim
I saw the NY Ballet production......but the prima ballerina screwed up the pas de deux.
I’d take Swan Lake any day.
Only Ballet I saw was the Bolshoi with Barishkonov (sp?) Fantastic.
The celeste, or celesta was discovered by rock-and-rollers in the 1950s and featured on tunes such as It's Too Late by Chuck Willis.
Swan Lake is my favorite. Have seen it in person, but this video I watched on repeat growing up will always take the cake: from the American Ballet Theatre - Natalia Makarova with Ivan Nagy. (1976)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDm8OCBmS5I
For the holiday season though, Nutcracker it is...can’t get enough of the music. And I love all the different spins on the music too like Jazz version etc...Found a salsa one of Dance of the Sugarplum Fairy:
https://youtu.be/GcC_F3f3JPw?si=zvUhoxiXAw6NxckQ
Oh I hear it! How nostalgic...
My appreciation of ballet and opera begins and ends with Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd.
More power to thems what likes it.
I recall my mother making us watch the Nutcracker...worst hours of my life including bouts with kidney stones...
LoL okay...
Well credit to Bugs Bunny. Definitely one of my favorite cartoon scenes. :)
https://youtu.be/TJI_gygXsfs?si=nTHM8QLKjIwFWgHb
I like The Nutcracker Ballet’s music but much prefer the ballets in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers.
I know, I know, not a Christmas show, but there was a lot of snow, a barn and a baby, although she was a girl. And all of the guys’ names were from the Bible, yes, even Frank’s. :)
Has anyone WILLINGLY ever watched the Nutcracker?
Yes. I've seen it several times in person and have Baryshnikov and Kirkland on DVD.
I like that version too...Clara is more adult though and they skip a few dances in the second half.
Agreed but the dancing is top notch.
OK. Baryshnikov was just amazing no matter what he did.
I absolutely agree.
“Has anyone WILLINGLY ever watched the Nutcracker?”
Never have I ever seen it. After hearing the ladies in my book club moaning about having to see ANOTHER grandchild in it AGAIN, I learned one more benefit of being childless.
My wife and I were in London a couple of years ago and we saw Royal Ballet Nutcuavker at Covent Garden. It was the best musical experience either of us had ever had.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.