Inland Pacific Ballet will stage ‘The Nutcracker’ in Claremont and Riverside

Inland Pacific Ballet’s annual holiday season production of “The Nutcracker” will be performed Dec. 13 and 14 at Bridges Auditorium in Claremont and Dec. 20 and 21 at the Fox Performing Arts Center in Riverside.

In addition to Inland Pacific Ballet’s company of professional dancers and guest artists, the cast includes young dancers from the Inland Pacific Ballet Academy in Montclair. The 62 young dancers, ages of 6 to 18, make up multiple casts at the two venues and many of them are from local communities, according to a news release.

“The Nutcracker” tells the story of a girl named Clara who receives a magical nutcracker doll on Christmas Eve and sets out on a journey to the Land of the Snow and the Kingdom of Sweets.

This year’s production includes new Color Guard rifle-twirling battl