For nearly two decades, “The Nutcracker” has been a holiday tradition for Kalispell’s Northwest Ballet Company. The dance company will perform the ballet for the 19th time this weekend.

But the tradition of “The Nutcracker” predates Northwest Ballet’s performance by more than a century.

“It’s just been going on for so long all over the world, because it’s such a beautiful story about little girls’ dreams and the magic and beauty of Christmas,” said Marisa Roth, director of Northwest Ballet Company.

“It has survived the test of time, the valley has embraced it and it has been such a tradition all over the world.”

The ballet is based on a children’s story, “The Nutcracker and the King of Mice” by E.T.A. Hoffman, and was set to music by Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The ballet tells the story of Clara, whose Christmas Eve dreams bring her beloved nutcracker to life and take her on a fantastic journey.

It’s a familiar story to many, which makes it a challenge for Roth to keep the Northwest Ballet production fresh year after year.

“The inspiration for me every year is the kids, the different casts,” she said.

“They’re growing every year, moving up the ranks to whatever role they’re ready to be challenged for. ... They’re my major inspiration, from the littlest, tiny 9-year-old mouse to the most mature of the company.”

The Palace of the Sugar Plum Fairy will see some changes this year, with a new backdrop and new characters. Bigfork artist Linda Ensign designed the backdrop and Roth asked costume designer Janet Hunt to create new costumes for dancing candy canes and peppermint sticks.

“She is brilliant and has such a passion for the kids as well,” Roth said of Hunt. “She has a great imagination and mind.

“We’re really quite spoiled when it comes to costumes,” Roth added. “She makes their costume theirs. That’s something big companies rarely have.”

The ballet school held auditions for “The Nutcracker” in September, and the company dancers have been rehearsing their roles faithfully ever since. Despite two and a half months of work, the dancers haven’t tired of it, Roth said.

The closer the performance gets, “the more antsy, excited, hyper, whatever, they become,” she said. “Every week there’s something new to keep it fresh. They’re doing well, doing really well.”

Principal roles in the ballet include the Sugar Plum Fairy, performed by Glacier High School senior Riley Freeman; the Snow Queen, by Morgan Sego, a home-school graduate from Polson; and the Dew Drop, by McKenna Miller, a junior at Flathead High School.

Northwest Ballet School student Megan Rediger, a sixth-grader at Kalispell Middle School, is dancing the role of Clara.

One of the best parts of the experience, at least for Roth, is the audience that turns out to see “The Nutcracker” each year.

“It’s fun to see — before, during and after the show — the little kids dressed up. It starts the whole Christmas time of year,” she said. “And there are the whispers in the crowd, the excitement ...”

She paused, and laughed.

“Of course, the kids would perform in front of an empty stage,” she said.

Kristi Albertson, editor of This Week in the Flathead, may be reached at 758-4438 or at kalbertson@dailyinterlake.com.