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E. T. A. Hoffmann's story, "The Nutcracker and The Mouseking" (or Nussknacker und Mausekönig in German) is written and published. This story inspires the plot for The Nutcracker.
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French writer Alexandre Dumas revises and re-writes a watered-down version of Hoffmann's "The Nutcracker and The Mouseking" which makes it simpler for Tchaikovsky to later incorporate the tale into a two-act ballet.
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Composer Tchaikovsky and choreographers Marius Petipa and Lev Ianov turn Hoffmann's story into the world's most famous ballet, The Nutcracker.
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The Nutcracker ballet premiers for the first time ever on December 18, 1892 at the Imperial Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia. The performance was initially not considered a success.
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Duke Ellington and music arranger Billy Strayhorn collaborated to create a jazz version of The Nutcracker ballet. The musical melodies and story stayed basically the same, but did feature a few tweaks. The jazz version features saxophones, drums and guitars, and some characters' names were slightly changed. (Sugar Plum Fairy = Sugar Rum Cherry.)
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New York Times journalist and dance critic Alastair Macaulay began writing "The Nutcracker Chronicles," a blog that documented different productions of the ballet across the U.S.
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Point Park's Conservatory Dance Company is performing The Jazz Nutcracker on December 7, 8, 9, 14, 15 and 16. This is the second consecutive year The Jazz Nutcracker has been shown at the Pittsburgh Playhouse Rockwell Theatre and is a revival of the PPU performances in 2000 - 2002. The "JazzNut" will show Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm, and Saturdays and Sundays at 2 pm.
