2025 Student Registration
for “The San Jose Nutcracker”
Enrolled Student Participation Requirements
Eligibility
Students must be currently enrolled in New Ballet School’s Senior Pre-Professional Division (Levels 4–6) or as a Studio Company Apprentice to participate.
Availability and Minimal Casting
Students should ideally have 100% availability for all Theatre Rehearsals and Performances. We understand, however, that some students may not be able to commit to the full rehearsal and performance schedule. Families who need a less intensive commitment may select Minimal Casting when registering.
Minimal Casting generally means:
Level 4: Students may be cast only as a Toy Soldier and may not be cast as a Flower or Flower Understudy.
Levels 5 and up: Students may be cast only as a Flower, Snow Understudy, or Snowflake and will not be eligible for Party Scene roles, other Act II roles, or other soloist or principal roles or understudies.
All scholarship students and Competition Team students must participate in “The San Jose Nutcracker,” either with Regular Casting or Minimal Casting.
December 26–27 Exception
Students who do not select Minimal Casting should ideally have 100% availability for all December Theatre Rehearsals and Performances. This year, Nutcracker performances run from December 19–27. Because of the extended performance period and the fact that many families make holiday plans during this time, we will make an exception for December 26 and 27. If your student’s only performance conflicts are on December 26 and/or December 27, you may still register for Regular Casting rather than Minimal Casting. Please list all conflicts when registering and make every effort to prioritize performances when possible.
Except for December 26 and 27, Performance and Theatre Rehearsal conflicts are not permitted for students selecting Regular Casting.
Students Who Do Not Register
Students in Levels 4–6 who do not register for Nutcracker may still be called to rehearsals that take place during their regular class time to serve as Studio Understudies. This allows them to learn and practice Nutcracker choreography without being cast to perform.
For Levels 5B and 6, this may include Tuesday afternoon and Saturday rehearsals scheduled during regular class time.
Casting and Performance Assignments
Students who select Regular Casting may be cast in all performances or in a smaller number of performances, depending on registration numbers, available costumes, choreography, casting needs, and other production logistics.
Students cast as Snowflakes and Flowers through Regular Casting are expected to attend all Theatre Rehearsals and remain available for all Performance dates for which they have not received an approved conflict, even if they are not initially scheduled to perform in every show. They may be needed to cover another dancer in an emergency and must remain familiar with choreography and spacing changes.
Students may also be called to the theatre on short notice if another student performing the same role becomes unexpectedly unavailable. Please be prepared for this possibility.
We consider these students to be advanced dancers and deeply appreciate the significant commitment to the production made by them and their families.
Minimal Casting: Theatre Rehearsal and Performance Conflicts
Students selecting Minimal Casting may request up to:
Two Theatre Rehearsal conflicts
Six Performance conflicts
These conflicts must be approved before registration.
If your student has Theatre Rehearsal or Performance conflicts, please email school@newballet.com before registering and paying the participation fee. We will let you know whether the conflicts can be accommodated.
If your student has more conflicts than the guidelines above, please still contact us. Depending on the student’s level, role, and casting needs, we may be able to accommodate additional conflicts, but there will be a point at which participation is no longer possible even with Minimal Casting.
Please carefully check school calendars, choir concerts, family travel, extracurricular activities, and other commitments before registering.
Theatre Rehearsal or Performance conflicts disclosed after registration may result in a student being unable to perform. If this occurs, the participation fee cannot be refunded.
In-Studio Rehearsal Conflicts
In-Studio Rehearsals take place at New Ballet between October 1 and December 7.
Please list all known In-Studio Rehearsal conflicts on your student’s registration form. We may be able to accommodate up to eight In-Studio Rehearsal conflicts with approval; however, more than five conflicts may affect casting and, depending on the student’s role and level, may prevent a student from being cast.
If you have questions about your student’s rehearsal conflicts, please email school@newballet.com before registering, and we will let you know what may be possible.
If a student is not included in Preliminary Casting because of excessive conflicts that were fully disclosed during registration, the participation fee will be refunded.
Conflicts disclosed after Preliminary Casting has been posted may result in the student being unable to participate, in which case the participation fee cannot be refunded.
Absences and Casting Changes
All absences may affect casting, even when the absence was disclosed in advance, excused, or unavoidable.
Illness, injury, family emergencies, or other unforeseen circumstances can sometimes cause a student to miss enough rehearsal time that they are no longer sufficiently prepared to perform safely and confidently. In those circumstances, casting may need to be changed or the student may ultimately be unable to perform.
If a student is unable to perform because of a conflict or absence that was not disclosed and approved in advance, the participation fee will not be refunded.
Preliminary Casting
Preliminary Casting will be emailed to families by September 28. Preliminary Casting indicates the role or roles a student will begin learning. Casting may be modified after the first or second rehearsal based on the needs of the production.
Performance Casting
Performance Casting will be announced by November 1. Please do not purchase tickets to watch your student until Performance Casting has been released, so that you can purchase tickets for the correct performance(s). Once Performance Casting is announced, casting cannot be changed by family request. We cannot alter casting to accommodate extracurricular activities, family events, preferred performance dates, or similar requests.
“The San Jose Nutcracker” is a significant time commitment, and we completely understand that not every family can accommodate the schedule. Please review all rehearsal and performance dates carefully before completing the Nutcracker Student Registration Form.
Performance Casting may still be changed by New Ballet staff after it is posted because of illness, injury, emergencies, or other unforeseen circumstances. If New Ballet makes such a change, the box office will do its best to assist families with previously purchased tickets.
Please continue to keep your student available for all required performance dates even after Performance Casting has been announced, as casting changes and emergency substitutions may be necessary.
Shoes, Tights, and Leotards
Depending on their role, students may be required to purchase additional shoes, tights, and/or leotards for the production.
Pointe Shoes for Nutcracker will be dyed skin tone by New Ballet staff. Pointe shoes will be due to be turned in, fully sewn and either broken in or new on December 1. Shoes should be turned in together with a rubber band around them and the students full name and level written in fine tip sharpie on the sole of the shoe on the inside.
Roles in “The San Jose Nutcracker”
Students in each level will generally be considered for the roles listed under “Schedules by Class Level” in the links below. Students in Level 4 and above may be cast in multiple roles unless they select Minimal Casting.
Casting is based on many factors, including ability, maturity, readiness, and appropriateness for each role. All casting decisions are made at the sole discretion of the Artistic Staff, and requests to reconsider or change casting will not be considered.
Understudies
Some students may be assigned to understudy roles in addition to roles they are cast to perform. Understudies are an essential part of the production and should attend all rehearsals for the roles they are understudying, even if they are not initially scheduled to perform those roles.
For Snowflakes, Flowers, Principal and Soloist roles, and other roles with understudies, the Artistic Staff may not determine which dancers will perform and which will understudy until final Performance Casting is posted by November 1.
Understudying is a valuable part of a dancer’s training and provides important opportunities to learn choreography, develop versatility, and be prepared to step into a role when needed. We count on families to help students understand the importance and value of being selected as an understudy.
A Positive Approach to Casting
Every role and each understudy contributes to the success of “The San Jose Nutcracker,” and every student’s participation is important to the production as a whole. We ask families to help students approach casting announcements positively and understand that casting decisions reflect the needs of the entire production, rather than serving as a ranking of individual dancers.
If you feel that you or your student will have difficulty approaching the casting process positively and supporting the Artistic Staff’s decisions, please carefully consider whether participation in “The San Jose Nutcracker” is the right choice for your family.
Rehearsal Availability
Rehearsals will generally take place on the days and during the time ranges listed on the webpages linked below. Students should be available for all rehearsal times listed for any roles for which their level may be considered before committing to participate.
As rehearsals progress, specific call times may change. Families should be prepared for Saturday and Sunday rehearsal times between October and December to shift by up to a few hours when necessary, although significant schedule changes are not anticipated.
