{"product_id":"the-nutcracker-comes-to-america-how-three-balletloving-brothers-created-a-holiday-tradition","title":"The Nutcracker Comes to America: How Three Ballet-Loving Brothers Created a Holiday Tradition","description":"Every December  The Nutcracker comes to life in theaters all across the United States. But how did this 19th-century Russian ballet become such a big part of the holidays in 21st-century America?  Meet Willam  Harold  and Lew Christensen  three small-town Utah boys who caught the ballet bug from an uncle in the early 1900s. They performed alongside elephants and clowns on vaudeville  immersed themselves in the New York City dance scene  and even put on a ballet featuring gangsters at a gas station. Russian immigrants shared the story of The Nutcracker with them  and during World War IIon a shoestring budget and in need of a hitthey staged their own Christmastime production in San Francisco. It was Americas first full-length version and the beginning of a delightful holiday tradition.  Follow along and learn how The Nutcracker came to be performed all across the United States from these truly humble beginnings.","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44884530561077,"sku":"ByrdShop_1467721514","price":28.55,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/ByrdShop_1467721514.jpg?v=1766745098","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/the-nutcracker-comes-to-america-how-three-balletloving-brothers-created-a-holiday-tradition","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}