Tonight, for the first time ever, Cincinnati Ballet, WLWT (Channel 5) and Frisch’s have teamed up to present televised performances of the holiday classic “The Nutcracker.” This year’s “The Nutcracker at Home presented by Frisch’s” will premiere in Prime Time, 8 p.m. December 22, with additional re-broadcasts throughout the holiday season on both WLWT and MeTV, Cincinnati channel WLWT 5.2.

The re-imagined, one-hour broadcast is “a holiday gift to the community,” says Cincinnati Ballet President and CEO Scott Altman.

The performance was recorded in Music Hall using safety protocols. The production will introduce new choreography by Artistic Director Victoria Morgan with support from artistic team, who worked with Emmy award-winning Director David Ashbrock to adapt the ballet for television.

Please look below to see the entire cast.

Due to the pandemic, dancers will wear masks and follow socially-distancing guidelines, but Morgan said audiences will enjoy an up-close, immersive experience of The Nutcracker like never before.

“With eight cameras capturing moments from every angle, even on the stage itself, this is a truly unique experience,” said Morgan. “Those magical moments we share together each year remain in this production — Clara and the Nutcracker Prince, the Sugar Plum Fairy and her Cavalier, plus we’ve added a few surprises just for this broadcast version.”

Cincinnati Ballet Music Director Carmon DeLeone and 35 Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra
musicians recorded a special score for the performance at Music Hall in late November. DeLeone
also spent many hours editing the music for this special broadcast. A streaming version of the
production will be also available to watch for a limited time after Christmas. More details to come at
cballet.org.

WLWT TV schedule:

8 p.m. December 22; 7 p.m. December 24; 5 a.m. and 12 p.m. December 25

MeTV Cincinnati Channel 5.2 schedule:

8 p.m. December 24; 10 p.m. December 25

The cast

Scene One – The Party

UNCLE DROSSELMEYER David Morse
HOST Daniel Wagner
HOSTESS Samantha Riester
CLARA Gabrielle Collins
FRITZ Jace Pauly
DANCING DOLL Christina LaForgia Morse
DANCING BEAR Matthew Griffin

Scene Two – The Battle

CLARA Gabrielle Collins
UNCLE DROSSELMEYER David Morse
NUTCRACKER Jace Pauly
MOUSE KING Matthew Griffin
MICE Taylor Nichols, Anthony Rhee-Reynoso, Daniel Wagner
SOLDIERS Nikita Boris, Alyssa Manguiat, Samantha Riester
SNOW QUEEN Sirui Liu
SNOW KING Joshua Stayton
HORSES Matthew Griffin, Daniel Wagner

Scene Three – The Land of Sweets

SUGAR PLUM FAIRY Melissa Gelfin De-Poli
CAVALIER Arcadian Broad
CLARA Bella Ureta
NUTCRACKER PRINCE Marcus Romeo
MIRLIPOO LEAD MAN Michael Mengden
MIRLIPOOS Jacqueline Damico Amador, Abbey Gonzalez Kay
SPANISH Samantha Griffin & Taylor Carrasco
RUSSIAN Daniel Baldwin
FIONA Danny Schultz

Scene Four – The Celebration Continues

FLOWERS Jacqueline Damico Amador, Blair Bagley, Minori Sakita, Maizyalet Velázquez
SUGAR PLUM FAIRY Melissa Gelfin De-Poli
CAVALIER Arcadian Broad
CLARA Bella Ureta
NUTCRACKER PRINCE Marcus Romeo