Indy Ballet & Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra: The Nutcracker

Indy Ballet & Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra: The Nutcracker at Clowes Memorial Hall

The Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra gives Tchaikovsky's score its full presence alongside Indianapolis Ballet's dancers. On December 18, 2026, at 7:30 PM, Indy Ballet & Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra: The Nutcracker takes over Clowes Memorial Hall in Indianapolis, and the biggest reason to go is simple: the dancing and the music happen live, in the same room, at the same moment.

Tchaikovsky's score is performed by the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, so the story doesn't arrive through speakers. It rises from the orchestra and moves across the stage with the dancers. Think about that moment when the music swells and the movement answers it. Nothing replaces that. It's the kind of feeling you carry out of the theater and into the cold December night.

Then there's the story itself. Clara's Christmas Eve journey leads her into the Land of the Sweets, and the production's visual world includes snowflakes, flowers and the Sugar Plum Fairy. It's a trip from a familiar holiday evening into something dreamlike, and it's easy to share with the people beside you. Indianapolis Ballet identifies its local Nutcracker tradition as dating to 2007, which makes this a chance to spend a seasonal night with a company that has made the ballet part of the city's calendar. This is the full collaboration at Clowes, not the one-hour Nutcracker Sweets. Reserve your seats for The Nutcracker at Clowes Memorial Hall and give your holiday plans a showstopper.