This season's presentation of the Nutcracker Jazzed Up! marks the fifteenth year anniversary of the word of mouth sensation. The full length ballet has played to sold out houses at the Aronoff's Center for the Arts, Jarson Kaplan Theater. This year marks the first time The Nutcracker Jazzed Up! will be presented in DE LA Dance Company's new theater, The Theater @de la Dance Center.

With a large cast of dancers, this fun reinterpretation of the yuletide classic returns once again to delight Cincinnati audiences. Artistic Directors Meridith Benson and Mario de la Nuez, bring together a cast of over sixty talented dancers that transforms the classic ballet into a fun, cool, and magical production. The Nutcracker Jazzed Up! has caught people's attention because it breathes new life into a family classic. This full-length production combines Duke Ellington's jazz “re-imagining" of The Nutcracker with Tchaikovsky's classical composition.

As the ballet opens, the audience is invited to a party set in the 1940's New York City with dancers swinging and bopping through Duke Ellington jazz score. The arrangements remain faithful to Tchaikovsky's music, but allow the audience to enjoy new colors and rhythms in the music and choreography. In the second act, the stage is transformed into the magical Kingdom of sweets and fantasy in which the full cast of classical dancers enchant the audience with traditional elements and the familiar beautiful classic ballet choreography.

DE LA Dance Company's The Nutcracker Jazzed Up! is a wonderful way to start the holiday season.