Tulsa Ballet Makes Holiday Magic

The Christmas season brings about a sense of magic and wonder—and even bits of nostalgia. You can find all of that woven into the story of The Nutcracker.

It is the tale of a young girl’s magical journey on Christmas Eve.

“There’s that sense of fantasy when she goes to the land of the sweets and meets the sugar plum fairies,” Scott Black said.

Black is the managing director of the Tulsa Ballet.

The dancers of the Tulsa Ballet know every twist and turn of the story by heart. They spend hours perfecting the choreography with equal parts athleticism and grace, all to bring the enchanting tale to life through dance. What makes this production so unique is the familiarity.

“They’ve been doing performances of The Nutcracker their whole career,” Black said. “But there still is that sense of magic because it’s probably a production of the nutcracker that got them interested in wanting to take dance.”

For many, The Nutcracker is an introduction to ballet. That introduction has, in turn, kept families coming back for years and years.

The Tulsa Ballet has put on versions of the nutcracker for more than 50 years.

“It is Tulsa’s holiday tradition,” Black said. “I think that’s what happens with a lot of people here. They have fond memories of coming to the nutcracker with their grandmother and they themselves are now grandparents bringing their grandchildren. That will continue and continue.”

“For one brief moment when you’re in the theater watching the performance all of that goes away. You can concentrate on the story of The Nutcracker, on the magic of the holidays.”

The Tulsa Ballet has performances of The Nutcracker each weekend of December.