Is it just me, or does everyone else need a professional planner to keep track of all the memory-building activities Columbus has to offer during the holiday season? There’s Conservatory Aglow, the Drexel Circle Tree Lighting and Menorah Lighting, Butch Bando’s Fantasy of Lights, WonderLight’s Christmas lights, Village Lights, Wildlights at the Zoo, the trains at the Main Columbus Public Library, the lights at Columbus Commons, the displays in the windows at the old Lazarus building... not to mention baking endless cookies or oiling up the whole kitchen with homemade latkes!

But nothing gets me quite in the feels as The Nutcracker. Its timeless appeal captures the wonder of the holiday season. And these four local sugar plums are helping bring that spirit to life! We asked Clara Lampert, Tessa Goodman, Lucy Vitale and Dagny Williams to share what they love about dancing in The Nutcracker.

Clara, a 4th grader at Cassingham, plays a Page with BalletMet

“I love the magic of this show, and I'm excited to be part of making people smile. I also like having fun with the cast. I've wanted to be in BalletMet's Nutcracker since I first saw it when I was four years old, and this is my first year in the production! I love that BalletMet's Nutcracker is performed in the Ohio Theatre - the beautiful theatre adds to the magic. Also, it was the first Nutcracker I saw, and I made special memories there. My big goal is to be cast as Clara one day. I love dancing because it is fun and a beautiful sport, and I love to improve and learn new positions and techniques.”

Lucy, a 3rd grader at St. Catharine School, plays a Page with BalletMet

“I like being in the Nutcracker because whenever I went to go see the Nutcracker it made me feel so much joy and I want other people to feel all that joy. This is my first year. I’d like to be in the Nutcracker again and my dream role is to be Clara. I like how when I go to dance class it clears my mind.”

Dagny, a 4th grader at St. Catharine School, plays a Page with BalletMet

This is Dagny’s first Nutcracker. She likes it because “I get to see my friends, get to dance and kind of just be on stage. It's also a good way to express myself. I get to stay with their memories forever.” She loves the BalletMet performance because “They put it in a different way. It's more expressive, there is a narrator in a few parts which makes it different from the rest.” Someday, a role she’d love to have is “Clara or the Sugar Plum Fairy. They are both great parts. The Sugar Plum Fairy has the best dance but Clara is the best over all.” She loves dance because “It's a fun way to express myself. It's kind of like poetry but through dance and I am a fan of poetry.”

Tessa, a 4th grader at Cassingham, plays a Ginger Snap Girl and is in the Mouse Corps with The New Albany Ballet Company

“I like being able to tell a story without talking at all, and being able to tell a different part of it every year is really fun. For the mouse, you have a head on so you don’t really make expressions with your face so you have to act way different. The costumes are very big and fluffy so you have to make your movements bigger so audiences can see it from far away. In the past I’ve been a bon bon, a bon bon chef, a dragonette. It would be really fun to play Fritz, but they only have boys playing Fritz.”