Clara’s Tea: Nutcracker Dreams

The Nutcracker is a holiday tradition that truly puts you in the spirit of Christmas. Each holiday season, if we’re very lucky, we get a glimpse of what makes the moments of the season sparkle.

For weeks my daughter was saying, “Mommy, I can’t wait for Clara’s Tea!” She would have liked to have driven herself there in twice the speed.

Most little girls would like it if they were just a little bit older. I imagine my daughter thinking, “How great would it be to live Clara’s dream, wear pretty dresses, dance in the snow, meet the Sugar Plum Fairy but then come home to Mom and Dad after the dream is over?” Clara has a very special Christmas magic and little girls like my daughter, eat it up…

Clara is infectious and very relatable to most young girls. My little girl aspires to be Clara but she’s not too far off in being similar in character at just age eight. Both, my daughter and Clara, are sweet and optimistic. They both have little brothers that are sometimes annoying. They also both love to play with dolls and believe in a sweet kind of magic you can taste.

Really understanding the story helps make the Nutcracker ballet become even more magical. It’s a wonderful way to introduce children to the ballet before seeing it. For many, it becomes a holiday family tradition and it all starts with Clara and her dreamy journey into the Land of Sweets.

My daughter’s dance studio recently hosted Clara’s Tea and the party guests were made to feel like they are part of the story…dressed for a Christmas celebration that felt like a fairy tale. Children would join Clara and her friends…including the wind-up ballerina.

The artistic director of Ballet Conservatory, Kelly Lannin, read the Nutcracker while guests sipped hot chocolate and ate Christmas muffins and quiche. Before the tea party was over, the children walked the red runway in a holiday fashion show followed Clara and her friends.