Celebrating 75 Years of Sugar Plum

America’s oldest Nutcracker celebrates its milestone 75th anniversary this month.

Willam Christensen created his production for San Francisco Ballet in 1944—the first full-length version in the U.S.—but it has been a fixture of Ballet West’s repertory since 1963, when he became the company’s founding artistic director. The tradition that launched our nationwide holiday fixation on dancing snowflakes and sweets marches on with Ballet West’s annual run in Salt Lake City, December 7–26.