Inside the Making of Wee Nutcracker

Associate Choreographer Nicholas Shoesmith and Artistic Collaborator Robert Evans take us behind the scenes of Wee Nutcracker, sharing how they reshaped a beloved classic for today’s young audiences.

How have you adapted the story of The Nutcracker in this “wee” version?

Nicholas Shoesmith (Associate Choreographer): With the help of Rob, our writer and artistic collaborator for this project, we’ve condensed the story into a swift one-act adventure that follows Clara’s journey of self-discovery. With a 10-dancer cast, the scenes feel much more intimate than our full-scale production. We experience Clara’s story first-hand and learn lessons with her along the way.

Robert Evans (Artistic Collaborator): The Nutcracker is already an adaptation (Dumas adapting Hoffmann), so it feels naturally ripe for reinvention. Our version centres on Clara—excitable, a bit clumsy, and full of fun, rather than the well-behaved, wealthy child we often see in traditional productions. Influenced by classics like The Snow Queen and The Wizard of Oz, we’ve made the show into a journey: Clara enters a magical land of toys where she learns to value her own kindness, humour, and courage.

What does Wee Nutcracker offer that’s different from the traditional full-length ballet?

NS: Wee Nutcracker offers a modernised, more relatable story for today’s children. While the full-scale version sits in a historical period, ours takes place in the present day, with a few added costumes and even some slight musical adjustments.

RE: This version gives audiences someone to root for—a clear way into the worlds and movement of the original ballet.

How did you decide which characters to keep, and which to re-imagine for a younger audience? 

RE: Clara was the obvious central character — she’s close in age to the children watching, portrayed by one of Scottish Ballet’s dancers. We kept characters from the Land of Sweets that felt most recognisable today. And the Russian Clown has one of the best costumes ever; we had to keep them in!

NS: We wanted to give more purpose to Clara’s relatives, who only appear briefly in the full-scare production. Our Prince is less regal and more of a goofball — literally a toy come to life who doesn’t know how to walk until Clara teaches him. We want children to feel like they’re watching another kid play with their toys and bring them to life.

What makes this production especially welcoming for families who might becoming to a ballet for the first time?

RE: It has a strong story and a fun protagonist. It gently questions some of the ‘traditional’ ideas of gender often found in older stories. At around 40 minutes, it’s an ideal length—and above all, it’s funny.

What can we expect from the music?

NS: The score has been newly arranged in-house by our company pianist, Brian Prentice, with brilliant additions from Lucy Allan to modernise Clara’s nightmare scene. It’s still Tchaikovsky, but structured to tell a slightly different story. We also have moments of live accompaniment with a selection of instruments to create a truly festive atmosphere.

How did the collaboration between choreography and storytelling work in practice?

NS: We began with storyboarding. Rob took inspiration from our full-scale production and reimagined key ideas for this fresh narrative. I then repurposed moments of choreography—and added many new ones—which we adapted together to support key acting moments. Giving movement context is what creates the layered performance we wanted: primarily for children, but with lots in there for adults too.

RE: Working with Nick has been a joy. He’s respected my work as a storyteller and been wonderfully flexible in translating script into movement.

What was your approach to creating new choreography for Wee Nutcracker?

NS: A big part of this reimagining was respecting the full-scale production—several choreographic voices shaped that work, and I wanted to honour them. I started there, then layered in fresh storytelling moments to create a show rich with movement without blurring the narrative.

Nicholas, how did your experience performing and choreographing the full-length Nutcracker influence this process?

NS: Having worked on the full-length version, I’d already spent a lot of time thinking deeply about specific scenes—a bit like having a head start. But my dancer’s muscle memory meant I automatically imagined set choreography with certain musical cues, so repurposing parts of the score for different scenes was a big challenge. My collaboration with Rob truly opened my eyes to new ways of refreshing historic works.

Robert, you’re known for creating brilliant children’s theatre—how did you bring that storytelling energy into a ballet?

RE: I wanted to do this project because I’d never worked on a ballet before. I’ve co-created several contemporary dance pieces (Tiger Tale, Little Red, Too Close to the Sun) and I knew Scottish Ballet would be open to experimenting for young audiences. Learning traditions unique to ballet has been brilliant, and bringing my own storytelling skills to the form has been incredibly satisfying.

How does it feel knowing this might be some children’s first ever ballet?

NS: Knowing this may be a first ballet for many children, we wanted the storytelling to be incredibly clear. If we can inspire a new generation to fall in love with this art form, that would be something to be truly proud of.

RE: It’s such a thrill. Young audiences connect with movement straight away—sometimes more readily than with language. I’ve made three dance shows for young audiences, and it’s always delightful to watch them follow a story told through movement.

What can audiences look forward to on stage?

RE: A completely absorbing Christmas treat, full of humour and joy. I hope audiences feel the richness of the story, delivered with the precision and physicality unique to ballet.

NS:A lot of dancing, funny moments, and heaps of Christmas joy! I especially love Clara’s journey through the Land of Toys and how she supports the characters she meets. There may even be a bit of winter snowfall…

What do you hope children — and their parents — will take away from Wee Nutcracker?

NS: Hopefully a new appreciation for our way of storytelling. If this show doesn’t get you excited for Christmas, I don’t know what will!

RE: A love of movement, of ballet, and of how dance can tell a story that goes straight to the heart.

Wee Nutcracker is supported by Albert Bartlett.