George Balanchine's The Nutcracker is a 1993 film adaptation of Tchaikovsky's famous ballet. Originally distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures through their Family Entertainment label, as part of the company's deal from Regency Enterprises, the rights is currently handled by Twentieth Century Fox (now Disney-distributed) through their exclusive partnership with Regency.
Synopsis
Act I
It is Christmas Eve. A Christmas party is to be held in the home of Dr. and Frau Stahlbaum. Their children, Marie and Fritz, can't wait to enter the living room and see the Christmas tree for the first time. Finally they are ushered in, all the guests arrive, and the party begins.
Suddenly Marie's godfather, Herr Drosselmeyer, enters with his young nephew, who is her age. He performs several magic tricks and then shows the children the wondrous life-size toys he brought, including a Harlequin and Columbine. They dance and the children are delighted. Then Drosselmeyer produces a smaller gift, a nutcracker made in the style of an old man. Marie is enchanted with it and claims it as her own, but Fritz snatches it away from her and deliberately breaks it out of jealousy. Marie is heartbroken, but Drosselmeyer comforts her. The party ends with the "Grandfather Waltz". The guests leave and Marie and Fritz go to bed.
But Marie can't sleep. She creeps downstairs, picks up the nutcracker, and falls asleep with it on the sofa. Frau enters and lovingly covers her with a blanket. Then Drosselmeyer appears on top of the grandfather clock. He picks up the nutcracker, repairs it, and then leaves.
Marie awakens to see life-size mice invading the living room. The Christmas tree magically grows to giant size, as does the dollhouse. The toys come to life, including the Nutcracker, who Marie awakens just as one would awaken a sleeping parent. He grabs his sword and joins the battle. He fights a duel with the Mouse King, and just as it seems that he is about to lose, Marie throws her slipper at the Mouse King, killing him, and faints.
The Nutcracker suddenly turns into a Prince, who looks just like Drosselmeyer's nephew. He had been turned into a nutcracker by the evil Mouse King, and only by whose death could he regain his human form. He goes to the dead Mouse King and, with his sword, cuts the crown off his head. The dollhouse bed on which Marie has fainted then begins to move by itself as if by magic and finds its way into a snow-covered forest. Holding the crown, the Prince goes to Marie, awakens her, and places it on her head. Hand in hand, they walk off into the forest. The falling snowflakes now assume human form and come to life, and they dance the Snowflake Waltz.
Act II
Marie and the Prince arrive at the Land of Sweets, ruled by the Sugar Plum Fairy. He explains to her what has happened in pantomine. In honor of Marie's bravery, a series of dances are performed by living candies - the Spanish Hot Chocolate, the Arabian Coffee, the Chinese Tea, the Trepak (Candy Canes), the Dance of the Reed Flutes (led by Marzipan), the Dance of the Clowns (performed by Mother Ginger and her children, the Polichinelles), and the Waltz of the Flowers (led by Dewdrop). Then the Sugar Plum Fairy and her Cavalier perform a pas de duex containing the beautiful Adagio. As the festivities end, the Sugar Plum Fairy kisses Marie goodbye, the Prince bows to her, and he and Marie fly off in a reindeer-drawn sleigh as everyone waves goodbye.
Ensamble
| Actress(es)/actor(s) | Character(s) |
|---|---|
| Darci Kistler | The Sugar Plum Fairy |
| Damian Woetzel | The Sugar Plum Fairy's Cavalier |
| Kyra Nichols | Dewdrop |
| Wendy Whelan | Coffee |
| Margaret Tracey | Marzipan |
| Gen Horiuchi, Miriam Mahdaviani, Immaculada Velez |
Tea |
| Tom Gold, Alexandra Ansanelli, Ellen Barr, Natalia Boesch, Charnie Carter, Tatiana Grigorenko, Scheherazade Madan, Carrie Riggins |
Candy Canes |
| Lourdes López, Nilas Martins, Janey McGeary, Sabrina Pillars, Teresa Reyes, Santhe Tsetsilas, Albert Evans, Russell Kaiser, Gordon Stevens, Rusheng Ying |
Hot Chocolate |
| William Otto | Mother Ginger |
| Peter Reznick | Fritz Stahlbaum |
| Karin von Aroldingen Edward Bigelow |
Grandparents |
| Heather Watts | Frau Stahlbaum |
| Robert LaFosse | Dr. Stahlbaum |
| Bart Robinson Cook | Herr Drosselmeyer |
| Jessica Lynn Cohen | Marie Stahlbaum |
| Macaulay Culkin | Drosselmeyer's Nephew |
| Kevin Kline (voice) | Narrator |
| Katrina Killian | Harlequin |
| Roma Sosenko | Columbine |
| Michael Byars | Soldier |
| Robert D. Lyon | Mouse King |
| Helene Alexopoulos, Lauren Hauser, Melinda Roy, Stephanie Saland, Simone Schumacher, Deborah Wingert, Lindsay Fischer, Kipling Houston, Peter Naumann, Alexandre Proia, Jock Soto, Eriends Zieminch |
Parents |
| Kimberly Cortes | Child/Angel/Soldier |
| Eve Harrison, Petra Hoerner, Ashley Siebert, Kielley Young |
Angels/Children |
| Miriam Peterson | Child/Soldier |
| Misha Braun Alex Wiesendanger |
Children |
| Alexander Levine, Igor Odessky, Andrei Vitoptov |
Children/Mice |
| Priscilla Pellecchia | Teenager/Candy Cane |
| Robert Wersinger | Teenager |
| Zippora Karz Julie Michael |
Maids |
| Emily Coates, Wendy Drapala, Elizabeth Drucker, Amanda Edge, Pauline Golbin, Dena Kistlinger, Margo Krody, Anna Leceica, Andrea Long, Zoe Mackler, Deanna McBrearty, Catherine Ryan, Pascale Van Kipnis, Elizabeth Walker, Miranda Weese |
Snowflakes |
| Michelle Gifford | Snowflake/Flower |
| Yvonne Burree, Jennifer Fuchs, Isabel Kimmel, Jennifer Tinsley |
Shepherdesses |
| Stacey Calvert, Kathleen Tracey, Jade Adams, Samantha Allen, Aura Dixon, Tatiana Garcia-Stefanovich, Dana Hanson, Lydia Harmsen, Heather Hawk, Romy Karz, Sherri LeBlanc, Monique Meunier, Jenifer Ringer |
Flowers |
| Kira Bosch, Sarah Brodsky, Alexis Doktor, Brynn Jinnett, Glenn Keenan, Marina Squerciati, Halley Zien |
Polichinelles/Mice |
| Dana Genshaft | Soldier/Mouse |
| Jessica Goodrich, Danielle Gordon, Sarah Mendell, Abigail Mentzer, Annie Ostrager, Rachel Paukman, Zoe Zien, Christopher Boehmer, James Fayette, Espen Giljane, Arch Higgins, Jerome Kipper, Richard Marsden, Bruce Padgett, Todd Williams |
Mice |
| Jennifer Barton, Vivian Chi, Katherine Daines, Lauren D'Avella, Scarlett Johnson, Jenny Raim, Diana Townsend-Butterworth |
Soldiers |