Roxey Ballet Presents the American Holiday Classic Tradition, The Nutcracker, Opening Thanksgiving Weekend

(Frenchtown, NJ 2023): Roxey Ballet welcomes the holiday season with its long-standing community tradition, the American Holiday Classic, The Nutcracker. The premier professional dance company in the central New Jersey and Southeastern Pennsylvania regions, Roxey Ballet’s 28th annual Nutcracker celebrates the values that lift us up during the season of giving with community participation and support. Each year Roxey Ballet welcomes community members to participate in the production through dance, crew, costumes, front of house, and backstage participation. Audiences are filled with families and supporters of the arts who include The Nutcracker in their holiday traditions, schools from all over the region who enjoy a matinee performance, and the special needs community who have the option of a sensory-friendly adapted performance.

Roxey’s Nutcracker features young dancers from throughout the region who are given the opportunity to dance alongside Roxey Ballet’s roster of world-class professional dancers. The blend of students and company dancers inspires the community with a production full of world-class talent and familiar faces. This year the dancers that are cast in the lead role of Clara, Charlotte Liddell and Katie Schied, are both students from New Hope, PA. The remainder of the cast is a blend of international professional dancers, students from Mill Ballet School, and local towns throughout New Jersey and Pennsylvania including Hunterdon, Mercer, Somerset, Middlesex, and Bucks Counties. Roxey Ballet’s Nutcracker is directed by Mark Roxey, co-founder of this acclaimed professional company, and features over 200 costumes designed by Alicia Worden and Nilda Roxey with lighting by Jeffrey Goldstein. Recognized as the most family-friendly production in the region and a beloved community tradition, Roxey’s Nutcracker provides the perfect introduction to ballet for children of all ages and is a timeless holiday performance enjoyed by adults. It is a magical spectacle created by Mark and Melissa Roxey, founders of The Roxey Ballet Company and The Mill Ballet School.

Welcome the holiday season with a fun-filled afternoon of sweets, coffee, tea, and hot chocolate with the characters from The Nutcracker at The Nutcracker “Suites” and Tea Party on November 12. Children and parents alike can expect delightful performances by Roxey Ballet’s professional artists, receive autographs and take photos, enjoy story time by the Sugar Plum Fairy, and participate in a Nutcracker-themed dance class. Tickets for the 11 a.m. tea party are available at roxeyballet.org/nutcracker-tea-party. 

Beginning Thanksgiving weekend and continuing into December, The Nutcracker will be performed at Villa Victoria Theater in Ewing, NJ. The story of The Nutcracker features Clara and her friends as they take you on an enchanting journey to meet magical mice, giant rats, marching soldiers, swirling snowflakes, waltzing flowers, and the beautiful Sugar Plum Fairy. Brilliant costumes and elaborate sets bring to life a heart-lifting magical voyage that ushers in the holiday spirit. 

Four weekend performances at 2 p.m. occur on Saturday and Sunday, November 25-26 and December 2-3, and a school/child matinee is offered on Friday, December 1 at 10 a.m. at Villa Victoria Theater. Tickets are available at roxeyballet.org/nutcracker and virtual tickets are also available.

Making the arts accessible to all is the mission of Roxey Ballet. A sensory-friendly performance of The Nutcracker will be held on Saturday, December 9 at 3 p.m. at Mill Ballet in New Hope, PA. This performance is suitable for children and adults with ASD and other special needs or sensitivities. Adaptations to the performance include decreased sound levels, elimination of special effects, reduced length of performance, and increased house lighting. It is also a great option for very young children, providing a relaxed atmosphere with the freedom to move around. Tickets are available at roxeyballet.org/sensory-friendly-nutcracker and virtual tickets are also available.

For the youngest fans of The Nutcracker, Roxey Ballet will offer three Sugar Plum Story Times at public libraries during the month of December. Join the Sugar Plum Fairy as she takes you on a journey through the magical Land of the Sweets with a reading, performance, and dance class given by professional dancers from Roxey Ballet. These events are free and open to the public and occur on Wednesday, December 6 from 6:30-7:30 p.m. at the Montgomery Library, Thursday, December 7 from 6:00-7:00 p.m. at the Hillsborough Library, and Saturday, December 16 at 10:30-11:30 a.m. at the Bridgewater Library. More details can be found at roxeyballet.org/events.

Performances of The Nutcracker will take place at Villa Victoria Theater, 376 W Upper Ferry Rd. Ewing, NJ 08628. Virtual tickets are available for all performances.

The Nutcracker “Suites” and Tea Party and the sensory-friendly Nutcracker will take place at Mill Ballet, 46 N Sugan Rd. New Hope, PA 18938

Visit roxeyballet.org/nutcracker for tickets and further details.

For interviews, photos or video footage contact [email protected] or call 609-397-7616. Photos are courtesy of Roxey Ballet and the photographer is Sabrina Liddell.

Roxey Ballet is a non-profit organization incorporated in New Jersey in 1995. Their programs are made possible in part by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts, The New Jersey Cultural Trust, The Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, VSA Kennedy Center The International Organization on Arts & Disabilities, Church and Dwight, Hunterdon County Cultural & Heritage Commission, Dance NJ, The Princeton Area Community Foundation, and by private donations from individuals and businesses.