This weekend, the Athletic Arts Center will perform their annual production of The Nutcracker at Rowland Auditorium in Jasper.

“This is our third production of The Nutcracker at Athletic Arts Center,” Maria Ross, owner, said. “But, this year is the first year we’re offering two performances.”

Those performances will be Saturday at 7 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets are $10 and are available in advance at the Athletic Arts Center or at the door.

The cast has grown over the last three years and includes ages five and up.

“This is the biggest cast we’ve ever had,” Ross said. “We have 58 children in this performance, plus about a dozen adults that are also participating. Everybody in the show came to an audition that we held in August.”

Although the ballet is presented by the Athletic Arts Center, the performers come from all over Walker County.

“We produce The Nutcracker, but it’s open to anyone in the community. You don’t have to be a student at Athletic Arts Center to be a part of The Nutcracker and we actually have quite a few that dance at other studios, in Walker County, and are performing with us for The Nutcracker,” Ross said. “We also have some that have never danced before, but have an interest in theatre and performing, so for some of our performers this is their first time to be on stage and see what it’s like to perform.”

The role of the nutcracker will be performed Auburn Roberts on Saturday and Ali Pounds on Sunday, while the role of Clara will be performed by Ginny Posey. These are some of the more technically advanced parts in the play, but other parts are more open for interpretation.

“We have a lot of dancers that are very technically trained that have been performing The Nutcracker with us for three years and are absolurtely stunning with their technique,” Ross said. “We also have kids that may not have had the opportunity to try different dance classes and haven’t been exposed to the technical aspects of dance, but have this passion for performing. When you see them learn the choreography and learn the steps and learn about their character, it really is special to see them transform that movement in their own way and present that on stage.”

In the second act of the classic ballet, three professional guests will join the cast onstage to perform. The professionals are Elizabeth Ross, Amberly Shelton and Amanda Vasquez. Ross is excited and hopes that people from around Walker County will come get caught up in the magic of the ballet.

“There is nothing like live theatre,” Ross said. “You can’t get that quality from a video. You have to be there in person to see it. Each time you do it, something is a little bit different. Each performer does it just a little differently and that’s really what’s so special. You get to see these kids put their passion and love for dance and love for performing into their role every time they do it.”