The curtain opens to find a young girl meeting her parrain on the bayou. The parrain tells her an enchanting story about a magical nutcracker. The young girl falls asleep and dreams "The Nutcracker" as only a Louisiana Clara could imagine it. Next, the audience is transported inside Clara's plantation home, where her family is hosting a lavish Christmas Eve party. Clara's mysterious Uncle Drosselmeyer arrives to delight the children with magic tricks, dancing dolls and a very special gift for Clara. Clara's family plantation, which is modeled after the interior of the Nottoway Plantation, is only the beginning of a wondrous journey. When Clara travels to the "Land of Snow", the setting becomes much like the majestic entranceway to Louisiana's Oak Alley plantation, with its rows of gigantic, hanging oak trees. Then for the second act, the "Kingdom of the Sweets", dances are set inside the Old State Capitol, with its complex glass stained glass windows and elegant spiral staircase.

The Nutcracker, A Tale from the Bayou is an annual production included in the Baton Rouge Ballet Theatre's season. This production is a special creation of BRBT Artistic Directors Molly Buchmann and Sharon Mathews, who adapted the timeless classic to a South Louisiana setting.