An exciting journey through the Land of Snow and the Kingdom of Sweets awaits audience members in Chickasha as the Davis-Waldorf Performing Arts Series helps kick off the holiday season with the Saint Petersburg Classic Ballet Theatre of Marina Medvestskayaís presentation of The Nutcracker.

One public performance of The Nutcracker is scheduled Dec. 9 at 7:30 p.m. in Te Ata Memorial Auditorium at the University of Science and Arts. Tickets for the general public are $10 each with discounts available for seniors 60 and above, students and children under 18 and USAO faculty and staff. Tickets are available at the USAO Business Office, 1727 W. Alabama, or by calling 574-1213.

The Nutcracker is the second performance in the eighth season of the Davis Waldorf Performing Arts Series sponsored by USAO and the USAO Foundation Inc. Still to come in the season are classical piano and blues performances.

“The response from the public about this production has been amazing. Itís been 12 years since we had a production of Nutcracker here at USAO back in 1996. We had more than 50 children audition from the Oklahoma City area down to Lawton,” said series coordinator Ken Bohannon, associate professor of music at USAO.

“Dance instructor Adrian Talley is doing a great job with the local kids and their choreography. Although there are tickets still available, I predict that we will sell out. I would encourage all community members to get their tickets now.”

The Nutcracker is based on the story The Nutcracker and the King of Mice written by E.T.A. Hoffman. Although what is seen on the stage today is different in detail from the original story, the basic plot remains the same -- the story of a young German girl who dreams of a Nutcracker Prince and a fierce battle against a Mouse King with seven heads.

This classic ballet, written by Peter Tchaikovsky, is choreographed by Peggy Willis-Aarnio and Marina Medvetskaya. This traditional version features dancers from the Saint Petersburg Classic Ballet as well as soloists from the Willis Ballet of Panama City, Florida as well as children from Duncan, Lawton, Oklahoma City and Chickasha.

The Saint Petersburg Classic Ballet is under the artistic direction of prima ballerina Marina Medvetskaya and is one of St. Petersburgís most well respected ballet companies. The Davis-Waldorf Performing Arts Series is presented with support from the Oklahoma Arts Council, the National Endowment for the Arts and KOOL 105.5 Radio with generous support from leading local sponsors: First National Bank, Alliance Oil and Gas, Chickasha Bank, Standley Systems and Chickasha Public School Foundation.

Other local sponsors include Mollett Hunter Companies, Arvest Bank, Mosley Insurance, IBC Bank, Dunnís Food Center, Mid-First Bank, Crazy 8 Café, Chickasha Physical Therapy and Mike Day State Farm Agency. More information is available at www.usao.edu/dwpas.