Westover Ballet's Nutcracker 1918

Christmas, 1918, Pulaski Depot.

The guns in France at last are quiet. The boys come home and are reunited with their loved ones. Gone are the brutal months of trench warfare and the anxious months spent waiting at home. Families can once again celebrate together, singing “Peace on earth, Goodwill toward men.”

This is the backdrop for the story of young Clara, eagerly waiting for her brother Perry to return. Westover Ballet’s Nutcracker 1918 takes her on a journey of vivid imaginations and finally brings her to a heartwarming conclusion.

Our story is inspired by the WWI journal of Pulaski native, Robert Perry Millirons, and was first performed in 2018.

D on't miss your chance to see this remarkable adaptation come to life on-stage at the Pulaski Theatre.

P erformances:

Thursday, December 18th @ 6:30PM (Doors open at 5:30PM)

Friday, December 19th @ 6:30PM (Doors open at 5:30PM)

Saturday, December 20th @ 2:00PM (Doors open at 1:00PM)

Tickets:

Adult: $12

Children under 12: $8

Children under 2 are free

The story behind the story…

Perry Millirons really lived in Pulaski, Virginia. The opening letters read in Nutcracker 1918 are taken from his actual WWI journal, and the character of Clara’s brother onstage is dressed in Perry’s actual WWI uniform.

Perry grew up in Pulaski’s Little Walkers Creek community before being suddenly plucked from home and thrust into the trenches of WWI France. A year after the war, he married Mary Eula King and settled down in Little Creek to farm and raise a family. Perry and Eula had four children, one of whom was my Grandmother. —Katherine Okie, Nutcracker 1918 choreographer