MOSES LAKE — The Ballet Academy of Moses Lake will continue a holiday tradition with the 2019 production of “The Nutcracker.” Performances are scheduled for 1 and 6 p.m. Saturday and 1 and 6 p.m. Dec. 15.

Performances are at the Moses Lake High School theater, 803 E. Sharon Ave.

Performances during the two weekends will have different dancers in each role, said ballet academy director Lacey Stowers. That requires the company to have, in essence, two different shows. “It’s a really big production.”

The ballet is “a holiday tradition, about a young girl at Christmas,” Stowers said. The ballet, dating from the 1890s, has been a Christmas favorite for more than half a century.

The Nutcracker is the story of a girl named Clara, who gets a special present one Christmas, a nutcracker in the form of a soldier. Clara sneaks back downstairs that night, falls asleep under the tree and dreams about a series of magical adventures, everything from dancing candies to a pitched battle between a group of evil rats and a magic prince. The prince looks a lot like Clara’s special nutcracker.

The original ballet was designed for professional dancers, so another part of the tradition is for companies to devise their own choreography. “Every studio has their own interpretation,” Stowers said. Her company’s rendition changes slightly from year to year, she said, depending on her dancers.

The ballet academy presents “The Nutcracker” every other year, with Today’s Generation Dance performing in the alternate years. Rehearsals started in October, she said, and it’s a big commitment for the dancers and their families. But dancers and parents also know what to expect, she said. “It’s easy, but it’s not easy.”

But even though it’s a big time commitment, it’s always a popular production. Stowers said she tries to take into account each girl’s skills, the parts they’ve already danced, the parts they want to do and the parts they don’t want to do. But “it doesn’t matter what role I give them, they love it,” she said.

Tickets are $12 for premiere seating, $10 for general seating, and are available through the ballet academy website, www.balletacademyml.com.