Young local dancers join the Nutcracker ensemble next week

28 Nov

A holiday classic is returning to the Auditorium Theatre next Tuesday, and once again some of our very talented local kids will be taking part.

About 38 boys and girls ages 4 to 18 from Webster’s Dancing With Denise studio will be performing alongside the full international professional Nutcracker! Magical Christmas Ballet troupe this year, filling the roles of little snowflakes, mice, party children, snow sprites, snow maidens, and variations. It’s a rare opportunity for these kids to audition, rehearse and perform with a professional, international touring ballet company.

The Nutcracker is truly a magical show, from the bright Christmas-Eve-celebration colors, costumes and staging in the first act, to the sparkling wintry scenes in Act II, all wrapped in the beautiful music we all know so well. The addition of adorable local children makes it even more enchanting.

The show takes place at the Auditorium Theatre, 885 East Main St., Rochester, on Tuesday, Dec. 2 at 7 p.m. Tickets start at $37. For more information about the show and to purchase tickets online, click here.

Preparing for the Nutcracker isn’t the only thing keeping these young dancers busy.

The Dancing with Denise Nutcracker families organized their second annual Making Spirits Soar Project this year, creating performance care packages for each of the professional dancers.

Thanks to tremendous support from all the DWD families, enough funds were raised to purchase, create, and decorate care packages for all 40 of the Nutcracker cast members. The idea is to provide the international dancers with food and treats to give them energy and protein while they’re on tour.

The Dancing With Denise students will present the care packages to the dancers during their stage rehearsal on the day of the show. Studio director Denise Baller says that the project is a way to teach “thoughtfulness and doing good deeds for others … part of the foundation of the Dancing With Denise studio.”

The Dancing With Denise studio is located at 1077 Gravel Rd. in West Webster.

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(posted 11/28/2025)

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