The Nutcracker of Middle Georgia is back with four shows at The Grand Opera House

The Nutcracker of Middle Georgia – a Middle Georgia holiday tradition since 1985 – opens at the Grand Opera House Dec. 10 and is one of many live-theater shows on offer in Macon-Bibb and Houston counties for the season.

After a December of disappointments with COVID-19 closing shows across the mid-state and worldwide in 2020, there’s a great variety in 2021.

As evidenced by the Nutcracker basically selling out its four-show run at The Grand by Thanksgiving, audiences are obviously eager for the beloved presentation of Tchaikovsky’s ballet.

The local Nutcracker presentation was begun by Macon dance instructor and studio owner Jean Weaver 36 years ago to provide a high-quality performance opportunity for Middle Georgia dance students and to fulfill a vision of providing the region with “The Nutcracker” while working with schools and civic organizations to promote interest in the performing arts.

Weaver served as founding artistic director until retiring in 2017 when her role went to Alice Sheridan. Sheridan grew up in Macon, learned dance in local academies, studied ballet at the North Carolina School for the Arts, danced professionally then returned to Macon in the early 1990s to teach with Weaver and assist with NMG.

“Dance has always been a passion for me,” Sheridan said. “I loved to dance as a child and that love continued – I couldn’t see myself doing anything else. I loved being on stage, the lights, the crowd – but I was never a good public speaker. I couldn’t stand to be in front of people talking but I could express myself dancing.”

Though thrilled to be able to mount the show this year, there were many unknowns when planning it earlier in the year and the NMG board opted to keep the number of shows to four over three days, Dec. 10-12, rather than its usual, slightly longer run.

Audience COVID precautions follow state, local and CDC guides and The Grand policies, which at this time mean masks must be worn.

“We’re happy to be performing but that’s not to say there haven’t been challenges due to COVID,” Sheridan said. “Our dancers will be performing without masks, and that’s important to something like ‘The Nutcracker,’ but they’ll wear them backstage and have worn them throughout practices. You can imagine how challenging that is for dancers but everyone stepped up and has done what’s necessary for the show. We have performers who are so committed. And so many volunteers, parents, board members and community members who are so supportive.”

If COVID is still presenting challenges, something else that has eased operations: for the first time, NMG has operated from its own studio space to get ready for The Grand. Located at 117 Orange St., their new facility’s grand opening is Saturday. In honor of Weaver, it’s called the Jean Evans Weaver Center for Dance and will additionally be host for related dance activities and workshops year-round.

There’s an ongoing campaign drive to fund the facility and operations.

“It’s still in process but we’ve been able to do everything out of there this year,” Sheridan said. “We held auditions, all rehearsals, costume fittings and everything we need to do from there. Logistically it’s such a help.”

Imagine having to let in or out, alter and otherwise make perfect more than 150 costumes each year without a central storage and preparation site with your seamstress having costumes at one location then meet dancers at appointments elsewhere to do the work.

Then size and repeat.

“It’s true, every costume has to be fitted one way or another, and this year, being able to have them at the same spot we’re rehearsing and tell a dancer, young or old, to run down the hall to see our costume mistress for a fitting has been huge. Lauren Parris always does an unbelievable job and I’m glad hauling costumes all over isn’t part of it now.”

Sets are stored at the new location, permanent offices are there and the many other facets of the production are there.

Here are a few more Nutcracker of Middle Georgia facts:

-There are nine scenes in the show with 15 scenery changes

-There are 35 different dances performed

-The ballet’s party and battle scenes are also choreographed

-NMG puts the production together in just 9 weekends, 18 days of rehearsal

-Students from nine dance schools are in the show

-One young performer travels from Statesboro

-More than 100 volunteers are involved in productions, many of them parents

-The student cast is typically around 120

-Ages range from 8 to 18

-Some dancers remain with the show from 8 to 18

-Some young performers have gone on to study dance and become professional dancers

-Typically, a half dozen professional dancers play lead roles

-There are 157 costumes, some performers play multiple parts

-The set includes a Christmas tree that grows to 21 feet tall

-There are 10,000 lights on the tree

-Waltz of the Flowers costumes are new this year

With Nutcracker tickets hard to come by now, there are other theater options available, including at Theatre Macon which begins its stage production of the classic “White Christmas” today running through Dec. 19.

“We went with ‘White Christmas’ because it’s kind of like comfort food and people need something like that this year,” said Richard Frazier, the theater’s artistic director and director of the show. “Everyone needs a little joy and this well-loved Christmas movie with its great songs fits perfectly. This is the film’s 65th anniversary so we’re part of that celebration and it’s been exactly 10 years since Theatre Macon performed it last.”

Frazier remembered that this time last year Theatre Macon was doing virtual, online performances only.

“We had to learn a lot of new things fast and missed the intimacy of live cast-audience performances. Looking ahead, we have a great year of entertainment lined up and we, like all the other theatre groups around, are cautiously optimistic that things will get better and better and that next year we won’t be operating under the cloud of a pandemic. I think we all have that holiday wish. But it’s great to be working more normally this year.”

Information, ticketing and contact for these and other December shows are:

-The Nutcracker of Middle Georgia: performing the endearing Christmas fantasy ballet.

Dec. 10-12. www.midganutcracker.com, www.thegrandmacon.com

-Theatre Macon: “White Christmas the Musical,” an adaptation of the Christmas classic. Dec. 3-4, 9-12, 16-19. www.theatremacon.com

-Macon Little Theatre: “Matilda the Musical,” based on the famed Roald Dahl book.

Dec. 10-12, 16-19. www.maconlittletheatre.org

-Warner Robins Little Theatre: “A Holly Jolly Folly,” a farcical WRLT holiday fundraiser. Dec. 10-12, 17-19. www.wrlt.org

-Perry Players: “Elf the Musical,” an adaption of the film. Dec. 9-19. www.perryplayers.org

-The Muse Theatre, Perry: “A Merry Vintage Christmas,” a heartwarming Christmas cabaret. Dec. 16-19. www.facebook.com/themusetheatre

Contact writer Michael W. Pannell at mwpannell@gmail.com.