Just as decorated trees, wreaths, colorfully wrapped boxes and Santa Claus himself are associated with Christmas, so are life-sized wooden nutcrackers, sugar plum fairies and a little girl named Clara. Holiday performances of “The Nutcracker,” arguably the most famous ballet in existence, are entrenched not only in culture worldwide, but also in Atlanta specifically–this season marks the 50th anniversary of Atlanta Ballet bringing “The Nutcracker” to the Atlanta stage.

Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky composed the music for “The Nutcracker” in 1892, and it was first performed in its entirety outside of Russia in 1934 in England. Fast-forward to 1959, and the Atlanta Ballet performed the by then famed production for the first time–but not just any version–our city’s ballet troupe was the only regional company allowed to perform the choreography created by famed choreographer and New York Ballet co-founder George Balanchine. From that time forward, the Atlanta Ballet built a holiday tradition with its annual performances of “The Nutcracker.”

Considering the prestige of our city’s ballet troupe, it is really no surprise that the honor of performing Balanchine’s version of the production was bestowed upon them. Originally founded in 1929, Atlanta Ballet is the longest continually operating ballet company in the nation. In 1995, Artistic Director John McFall decided to create a new version of the famed production–the version we see today–a production that includes 20 pounds of artificial snow, eight tons of scenery, a three-story Christmas tree and more than 250 child performers. “I wanted to create a distinctly family-oriented ‘Nutcracker,’” he shares. “I wanted to populate the production with young dancers–to bring the experience to them in a visceral way because for many dancers it is their first experience performing with professionals on stage. Performing in ‘Nutcracker’ can really be a defining moment for a young dancer and can give them a great sense of purpose.”

Today, the on-stage presence of children is an integral part of seeing “The Nutcracker” in Atlanta, and it is this element that makes the show such an intrinsically family affair–an impressive feat considering how boring ballet is typically deemed by the young.

But the addition of children isn’t the only change that McFall brought to the production. Despite Tchaikovsky’s Russian nationality, he set his show in Germany, something McFall decided to change. “Tchaikovsky wrote ‘The Nutcracker’ in 1893; it was the last major score that he ever penned, and it has moved countless people for more than a century,” he says. “I thought it would be most appropriate and respectful to this musical genius to set the production in the world in which he lived–a winterscape in turn-of-the-century St. Petersburg.” McFall’s changes have set the Atlanta Ballet’s production apart from any other company in any other city in the world, making Atlanta, once again, a city of distinction.

Ever since McFall’s revamped production hit the stage, the Atlanta Ballet has performed “The Nutcracker” at The Fox Theatre–a truly fitting union, since the theater’s opulence and history are the perfect pairing with the dramatic staging, period costumes and special effects of this equally grand production.

Despite being performed for 50 years, Atlanta Ballet’s “Nutcracker” is far from stale. “We are always looking for ways to infuse even more magic into our production and to challenge our dancers and our audiences with new and exciting possibilities,” McFall says.

So whether it’s an annual tradition or you’ve never seen the beloved holiday classic, there’s never been a better year to spend time with sugar plum fairies, waltzing flowers and a giant rat king.