Moscow Ballet’s Great Russian Nutcracker is returning to the Lake Area once again this Friday, Dec. 27, and will feature 50 local dancers. The performance will be at 7 p.m. at the Rosa Hart Theatre in the Civic Center.

Sarah Jones, of the Sarah Quinn Jones School of Ballet in Lake Charles, said in a news release that she has coordinated local dancers to share the stage with the classically-trained Russian troupe since they first performed in Lake Charles in 1996. This year’s dancers are from Jones’ studio and the Katy Kress Dance Revolution studio in Sulphur.

“Moscow Ballet’s production uses unique sets to transport the audience to a fantasy land of holiday splendor,” Jones said. “The Russian dancers bring humor, charm and athletic prowess to Tchaikovsky’s timeless score.”

Moscow Ballet’s website, www.nutcracker.com, states that the performance “dramatizes the traditional story of Masha meeting her ‘Prince’ and, exclusive to Moscow Ballet’s Great Russian Nutcracker, adds a tribute to world peace as well.”

“‘The Dove of Peace,’ for which two dancers become one bird with a 20- foot wingspan, escorts Masha and Prince to the ‘Land of Peace and Harmony.’”

Tickets prices start at $28.00 and are available through Ticketmaster or online at http://www.nutcracker.com/yourcity/lake-charles-la.

(Special to the American Press)