The Nutcracker
A Central Coast Holiday Tradition
A Fresh Take on a Holiday Classic — Inspired by the History of San Luis Obispo
1894 or 2026?
Come take a journey back in time.
Movement Arts reimagines The Nutcracker through the history, people and places of California's Central Coast, creating a fresh and distinctly local interpretation of one of the world's most beloved ballets.
Saturday, December 19 at 1:00 pm and 6:30 pm
Sunday, December 20 at 1:00 pm
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Clara's Story -- Reimagined
The familiar magic is still here: Clara, the Nutcracker Prince, the Rat King, a moonlit journey and an unforgettable Christmas adventure.
But this isn't quite the Nutcracker you know.
Our story transports Clara to San Luis Obispo in 1894, a community being transformed by the arrival of the railroad and shaped by the diverse people who called California's Central Coast home.
Follow Clara on one fateful Christmas night as she saves her prince from the Rat King and unlocks him from his wooden armor. Her adventure carries her through a moonlit night, the Land of Sweets and SLO's historic Chinatown, where the people and cultures she encounters change the way she sees her community—and her world.
It is the timeless story and music audiences love, reimagined through the history of the place we call home.
ONE MOVEMENT.
TWO WAYS TO EXPERIENCE DANCE.
From San Luis Obispo History to the Stage
When Movement Arts created its first full-length Nutcracker in 2024, Artistic Directors Ryan Lawrence and Maartje Hermans-Lawrence knew they didn't want to simply reproduce the traditional ballet.
Instead, with help from the History Center of San Luis Obispo County, they looked to the community's own history for inspiration.
In 1894, the railroad was coming to San Luis Obispo with the labor of Chinese workers. Rancheros worked cattle, shepherds tended flocks supporting the region's dairy industry, and miners extracted mercury from the surrounding hills.
Those stories became part of Clara's dream.
Traditional Nutcracker elements are transformed through a Central Coast lens, weaving local characters, history and culture into the choreography, costumes and storytelling—with a few distinctly Californian surprises along the way.
“We tried to make it more Clara's story on Buchon Street.”
— Maartje Hermans-Lawrence, as quoted in New Times
The result is a Nutcracker that feels both familiar and completely new: a modern interpretation rooted in the history of San Luis Obispo.