The Nutcracker Quiz: Tchaikovsky's Christmas Ballet

This The Nutcracker quiz explores the holiday ballet, from Tchaikovsky's music and the 1892 premiere in St. Petersburg to E.T.A. Hoffmann's story, Clara and Drosselmeyer, the battle with the Mouse King, the Land of Sweets, the Sugar Plum Fairy's celesta and George Balanchine's famous production.

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🎯 Daily Trivia Challenge • 🧠 10 Questions • ⏱️ 90 Seconds

Question 1 / 10 Time: 90s

Composer
Who composed the music for The Nutcracker?
Premiere
In which city did The Nutcracker premiere in 1892?
Story
The ballet is based on a story by which German author?
Characters
Who gives the girl the nutcracker as a Christmas gift?
Characters
The nutcracker leads a battle against which enemy?
Music
Which instrument, then new to orchestras, plays the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy?
Setting
In Act II, the girl and the prince travel to which magical kingdom?
Names
What is the girl usually called in American productions of the ballet?
Productions
Which choreographer's 1954 New York City Ballet version helped make The Nutcracker an American holiday tradition?
Music
Which Disney film used music from The Nutcracker Suite in 1940?

Explanations: answer key for all 10 questions

Q1: Who composed the music for The Nutcracker?
Answer: Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Tchaikovsky also wrote the music for the ballets Swan Lake and The Sleeping Beauty. He was not sure The Nutcracker would succeed.
Q2: In which city did The Nutcracker premiere in 1892?
Answer: St. Petersburg
It opened at the Mariinsky Theatre in December 1892, as part of a double bill with Tchaikovsky's opera Iolanta.
Q3: The ballet is based on a story by which German author?
Answer: E.T.A. Hoffmann
Hoffmann's The Nutcracker and the Mouse King was published in 1816. The ballet used a lighter French version by Alexandre Dumas.
Q4: Who gives the girl the nutcracker as a Christmas gift?
Answer: Her godfather Drosselmeyer
Drosselmeyer is a mysterious toymaker and magician. Fritz, the girl's brother, breaks the nutcracker during the party.
Q5: The nutcracker leads a battle against which enemy?
Answer: The Mouse King
In many productions, the girl saves the nutcracker by throwing her slipper at the Mouse King.
Q6: Which instrument, then new to orchestras, plays the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy?
Answer: The celesta
Tchaikovsky discovered the celesta in Paris and kept it secret so other composers would not use it first. Its sound is like tinkling bells.
Q7: In Act II, the girl and the prince travel to which magical kingdom?
Answer: The Land of Sweets
There, dancers perform national dances named after treats such as chocolate, coffee and tea, followed by the Waltz of the Flowers.
Q8: What is the girl usually called in American productions of the ballet?
Answer: Clara
In Hoffmann's original story she is Marie, and Clara is the name of her doll. Many productions use either name.
Q9: Which choreographer's 1954 New York City Ballet version helped make The Nutcracker an American holiday tradition?
Answer: George Balanchine
Balanchine had danced in The Nutcracker as a boy in Russia. San Francisco Ballet staged the first full American production in 1944.
Q10: Which Disney film used music from The Nutcracker Suite in 1940?
Answer: Fantasia
Fantasia set the music to dancing fairies, mushrooms and flowers rather than the ballet's story.

The Nutcracker Quiz – A Holiday Ballet Classic

The Nutcracker is the most performed ballet in the world, and for many families it is an essential part of the holiday season. Every December, companies large and small stage it in theaters across North America and Europe, and its music can be heard everywhere, from concert halls to shopping malls and TV commercials. Yet its first performance was not considered a great success.

The ballet was created in Russia. Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky wrote the music, and choreographers Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov created the dances. It premiered at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg in December 1892. The story comes from E.T.A. Hoffmann's 1816 tale The Nutcracker and the Mouse King, in a gentler version written by Alexandre Dumas.

In the first act, a girl, called Clara or Marie, receives a nutcracker from her godfather Drosselmeyer at a Christmas Eve party. At midnight, the toys come alive, and the nutcracker leads a battle against the Mouse King. In the second act, the nutcracker becomes a prince and takes her to the Land of Sweets, where the Sugar Plum Fairy welcomes them with a series of dances.

The Nutcracker became a holiday tradition in the United States after San Francisco Ballet's 1944 production and George Balanchine's 1954 version for New York City Ballet. Tchaikovsky's music, including the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy and the Waltz of the Flowers, was also popularized by Disney's Fantasia. Today, many ballet companies rely on it for a large part of their yearly ticket sales.

This quiz covers the music, story and history of The Nutcracker.

What This Quiz Teaches

This quiz is perfect for dance fans, music lovers and families planning a holiday outing.

Who composed the music and where the ballet premiered
Which story inspired the ballet
The main characters and plot
Why the celesta was special
How The Nutcracker became a holiday tradition
Famous pieces from the score

Quick Facts About The Nutcracker

Tchaikovsky also created a shorter concert version called The Nutcracker Suite.
Many productions use local children as mice, soldiers and angels.
Nutcrackers carved as soldiers are a traditional craft in Germany's Ore Mountains.
Some companies perform the ballet more than 30 times each season.
The ballet's Arabian dance is based on a Georgian lullaby.
Modern versions include a jazz Nutcracker by Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn.