DCS & DTS Present

A Nutcracker

Synopsis

Act 1

Drosselmeyer and his nephew are preparing for the Staulbaum annual Christmas Party. Drosselmeyer is putting the finishing touches on his Nutcracker and Fairy Doll. His plan is to present these dolls to the Staulbaum family. The Nephew is hesitant to attend the party knowing that he tends to get bullied by the other children who will be in attendance. All he wants to do is stare out the window and dream of dancing among the night stars. This year though, The Nephew is feeling less apprehensive. Following in the footsteps of Drosselmeyer as a master doll maker, The Nephew has built a new dancing Sasquatch Doll. He is cautiously optimistic to share his unlikely creation with the party guests. Drosselmeyer, slightly embarrassed to present The Nephew’s less than normal creation, is hesitant that his reputation will be tarnished if The Nephew’s doll is shown. He begrudgingly allows The Nephew to bring his obscure doll.

Drosselmeyer and The Nephew arrive at the party and present their gifts to the guests. The Nephew’s fears come true as he is immediately bullied by the children at the party for his quirky Sasquatch Doll. Never one who naturally fits in, The Nephew becomes the target of the guests and is ridiculed for being different. To take the focus off The Nephew, Drosselmeyer presents Clara, the Staulbaum’s daughter, with a Nutcracker Doll. In a fit of rage, The Nephew breaks Clara’s new gift and blames Fritz, Clara’s younger brother, before admitting to his actions. In retaliation, Clara breaks The Nephew’s new Sasquatch Doll.

The adult guests decide to retire to another room to escape the antics of the children. Feeling sad and alone, The Nephew mourns over his dilapidated Sasquatch Doll. The air of the room becomes darker as the children begin to torment The Nephew. What were once children, they have begun to morph into larger demonic versions of themselves. In fact, everything in the room has begun to grow in size including the Nutcracker Doll. Still protecting his dilapidated Sasquatch Doll, The Nephew realizes that it is starting to move autonomously. Drosselmeyer has returned to protect The Nephew and is bringing the Sasquatch Doll to life for The Nephew. Drosselmeyer has also created a forest out of the large Christmas Tree as a means of escape for the Nephew and his doll. The demonic children and the Nutcracker begin attacking the Sasquatch Doll and The Nephew. In a plea, the Sasquatch Doll awakens the Fairy Doll. She distracts the Nutcracker and the demonic children to give the Sasquatch Doll and The Nephew an opportunity to escape through the forest. Now in danger herself, the Fairy Doll outsmarts the furious army and escapes herself into the trees. The three are transported out of the Staulbaum home and into a magical forest, safe from the perils of war they were just a part of.

The Nephew exits the trees and begins to hesitantly explore the forest where he now finds himself. There is a gentle falling rain. He turns to find that his new friends, upon exiting the trees, have become new versions of themselves. The Fairy Doll has become the Fairy Winterberry and his Sasquatch Doll has become a Sasquatch Regent. Their play is interrupted by the entrance of a glamorous Rain Queen who beckons her Raindrops to dance among the forest. The three dance while the Raindrops twirl around them. The Rain Queen commands her Raindrops to usher them on their journey to the Island of Winter Stars. The Nephew holds back for a moment as he beings to recognize the Rain Queen. He thanks her for her generosity and support and runs after his friends and their river of Raindrops.

Act 2

One night a year, the night stars come down from the sky to the Island of Winter Stars. The local gnomes of the area are preparing for the arrival of the great celestial shooting star Estella and her constellation of stars. Much to their astonishment, the gnomes work is halted as three new arrivals come to the island. The Nephew describes their journey and how they have come to arrive there. The gnomes tell them that the stars will arrive soon and invite the three friends to join in on the celebrations. The Nephew is overwhelmed at the notion he will get to be among the stars, his dream back home. They dance to show their appreciation and are ushered to enjoy the dances of the invited guests. The gnomes start off the festivities, followed by an elusive unicorn, chanterelle mushrooms of the island, salmon darting to and fro through the river, forest fairies and their entourage of pixies, and The Lady Rhododendron who guides her little helpers. Each guest provides The Nephew a new found sense of self and importance. Finally, Estella arrives with her stars and, unable to contain his excitement, The Nephew joins the stars for their waltz, swirling through the air from star to star.

The three friends, finding themselves in a moment of pause, dance a grand pas de trois to commemorate their journey to the Island of Winter Stars and to celebrate The Nephew and his newly found sense of self. As all of the guests return for a final celebratory dance, Estella gifts a piece of her star to The Nephew which he immediately puts in his pocket as to not lose it. Through their group dance, like a hurricane, and unbeknownst to The Nephew, the island and its inhabitants begin to fade and we are transported back to the Staulbaum home. The Nephew spins around to find himself back in his original surroundings with his dilapidated Sasquatch Doll back on the floor. He hurries to his Sasquatch Doll and cries over its still body. Confused and distressed, he feels something in his pocket. He finds the piece of star he received from Estella, still glowing with its magic from the Island of Winter Stars. The brightness of the star piece, illuminating his face, reminds The Nephew of his unique courage and he returns to the party with a new found confidence and his head held high.