40th Anniversary of Abilene Ballet Theatre’s The Nutcracker

This November, the Abilene Ballet Theatre (ABT) is celebrating the 40^th anniversary of their stage production of The Nutcracker. It is a timeless ballet about a young girl named Clara that receives a Nutcracker doll from her uncle as a Christmas present, who later comes to life to fight off the Mouse King and his army of little mice. The Nutcracker then transforms into a prince and takes Clara into the Land of the Sweets to visit the Sugar Plum Fairy along with dancing candy canes, dragons, peacocks, gingerbreads, clowns, and flowers.

A production such as this could not be done without the tireless work of the directors, teachers, dancers, parents, volunteers, stage managers, and dedicated seamstresses. This exhibition will celebrate the hard work of these individuals. It will recount the history of ABT’s production through photographs, performance programs, and oral histories, and will highlight the many detailed costumes and set pieces that have been used over the last 40 years.