The Nutcracker ballet is based on E.T.A. Hoffman’s book, The Nutcracker and the Mouse King, the classic story of a girl who helps a wooden nutcracker defeat a nasty army of mice – only to find herself in the magical dream world of the Land of Toys. Lavishly re-imagined by Graham Lustig, American Repertory Ballet’s acclaimed Artistic Director, this magical production is cast with over one hundred performers from ARB’s Princeton Ballet School, some as young as seven years old. Set design is by Zack Brown and lighting by Alexander V. Nichols.