Visions of sugar plum fairies will come to life this Friday as North Stars Dance Academy performs "The Nutcracker."
Performances are set for Friday at 4 and 7 p.m. at the Community College of Southern Nevada's Cheyenne campus, and will be the valley's only full production of the Nutcracker ballet aside from that by the Nevada Ballet Theatre.
"We want to put on a big production like a [professional] company," said Luz Morante, professional dancer and instructor at the academy. "When you see [kids] do this and they work so hard, it's amazing. They've really surprised me. I'm really proud of them."
This will be the academy's second annual performance of "The Nutcracker." Morante said about 110 people will participate in the production, including some parents as extras in scenes form a party.
Parents have also volunteered their time making costumes for the production and working backstage.
"This is about community," said Marty Quillin Ph.D., owner of North Stars Dance Academy. "The fact that families and kids are so involved with this production is really neat. Having kids and parents work together was a very positive experience."
Morante said the dance company held auditions for the performance in August, and started having rehearsals in September.
"They have worked so hard on this, they love dancing," she said. "I really appreciate their hard work, and the parents have been so nice."
North Stars Dance Academy rented the backdrops for the show from Grosh Rentals. While there are at least 30 different versions of the Nutcracker ballet, Morante said this production is inspired by the Russian choreographer Marius Petipa's version.
Morante also said the students participating in the performance range in age from 3 to 21 years old. Because the dance academy will stage the full ballet twice, two sets of students will dance the main roles.
Quillin said the production will be similar to last year's, with the addition of a few extra cast members.
"We've added the part of the angels, so we have a complete production this year," she said. "The angels were all we were missing last year."
Though the auditions were open to the public, Quillin said all but two of the roles were filled by current North Stars Dance Academy students.
Heidi Otero, a North Stars Dance Academy instructor who will participate in the performance, said the students participating in the production have been very focused and dedicated.
"Doing this with them just refreshes why I love to teach dance," she said. "They're putting in long days and working very hard, but it will be worth it when they do the performance."
Students agreed that the long hours of rehearsal will pay off at performance time. Paula Morante, Luz's daughter and a student at the academy, will dance the part of the sugar plum fairy.
"It's really hard -- we spend seven or eight hours every weekend rehearsing, plus our daily dance classes," she said. "On Sundays we put all the dances together. It's pretty tiring, but everybody's very excited."
Lacey Thompson, a North Stars Dance Academy student, was involved with the ballet last year, and will dance the part of Clara this year.
"I think this will be even better than last year's," she said. "Everyone is more experienced than last year, and we're really excited. I'm excited to be dancing this part."
Quillin said she has been impressed by the effort both students and staff have put into the production.
Performances will be held in the Nicholas J. Horn Theatre, 3200 E. Cheyenne Ave.
Tickets are $10-$12 and must be purchased at North Stars Dance Academy, 7071 W. Craig Road, No. 104. For more information, call 942-7827.
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