The production features Westside Ballet dancers alongside members of the SMC Symphony and SMC student performers
Westside School of Ballet, in partnership with Santa Monica College’s Public Policy Institute, will stage eight performances of Tchaikovsky’s “The Nutcracker” at The Broad Stage from Nov. 29 through Dec. 7.
Public shows are scheduled for 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays: Nov. 29-30 and Dec. 6-7. Separate weekday matinees reserved for fifth-grade classes in the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District are also planned, with schools coordinating attendance through the college.
The production features Westside Ballet dancers alongside members of the SMC Symphony and SMC student performers. It uses George Balanchine choreography performed under license from the Balanchine Trust.
Tickets, priced from $45 to $85, are available through westsideballet.com. The venue is located at the SMC Performing Arts Center, 1310 11th St., with free parking on site.
Richard Tahvildaran-Jesswein, co-director of the SMC Public Policy Institute and a political science professor, said the school-day performances are intended to give many students their first live exposure to classical ballet and orchestral music. Several young cast members attend local public schools, he noted.
