The Texarkana Community Ballet once again presents a seasonal, classic ballet for Texarkana, “The Nutcracker,” on Dec. 5-7.

The timeless ballet concerns Clara, the Nutcracker, the Prince, the Sugar Plum Fairy and mice. Together they make for magical ballet. It’s one of the most popular entertainment options for the winter holidays, delighting children everywhere.

“The whole show will probably be under two hours, and it’s very entertaining for ages 4 or 5 years old all the way up to seniors for sure,” said Gayle Burrow, TCB board member.

“‘The Nutcracker’ is traditional, and it’s our big production and involves more people. It has more work, but we always have a bigger audience and go for that third performance instead of maybe just two. It’s always very well received by the community. People know ‘The Nutcracker’ story now,” said Burrow.

Nearly 200 people are in the cast. Kids auditioned in August to begin rehearsals in September. Ten area dance schools are participating.

“The Texarkana Community Ballet is a group of teachers from the area,” said Burrow.

It’s a production towards which the TCB devotes a lot of time, planning and forethought. With some exceptions for new shows, TCB performs it annually at this time of year. Burrow believes it’s been performed here since the late 1960s.

The sets and backdrop had to be ordered more than a year in advance. “They’re going to be beautiful,” Burrow said.

For the youth who are part of the play, it takes dedication and time, but they’re part of a classic production.

“These kids have worked once a week,” said Burrow about practicing the past two months. The soloists practice about four hours a week on top of that.

Hadley Smith, who has been dancing for 15 years, plays the Sugar Plum Fairy. It’s her eighth TCB production, so she’s been around their ballets for a while.

“I’ve kind of worked my way up that ladder of roles,” said Smith, whose first role was a party scene child. She became Clara in the 6th grade, a role she thought was a lot of fun.

With all the work she’s put in, this role is important to her.

William “Billy Earl” Atchison plays the Cavalier. He’s the king of the Sugar Plum Fairy’s kingdom, the Land of the Sweets.

“Trying to match her is pretty difficult,” he said about dancing with Smith. “It’s humbling because she’s awesome and I don’t have very much experience. I’ve been dancing for three months now.”

But Atchison said the experience so far has brought him up quickly. He has done high school theater work before this role.

Haleigh Wright plays Clara, the one who has the Nutcracker and dreams he comes to life. She’s been in “The Nutcracker” before, but she said that doesn’t necessarily make it easier.

“Every role is different to play because you have to become something else, a different character. Clara is a lot of acting,” said Wright, who’s been dancing 13 years.

Nathan Mayfield, who also has 13 years of dancing experience, starts off playing a nephew in the ballet but then progresses into the title role, the Nutcracker himself.

Burrow encourages people to get tickets now to ensure a good seat for the show.



(Tickets are available now at the Perot Theatre Box Office for $10, $8 or $5. To purchase tickets call 903-792-4992 or visit www.trahc.org. Show times are 7:30 p.m. on Dec. 5 and Dec. 6 and 2 p.m. on Dec. 7.)