Dust off your tutu. Disney+ announced that the complete original six-part docu-series On Pointe will premiere exclusively on the service. On Pointe captures a season in New York City’s world renowned School of American Ballet (SAB).
Featuring unprecedented access to one of the top youth ballet institutions in the world, the series follows the lives of the students ages 8 to 18 pursuing their dreams to become ballet dancers. While older students from all over the country rigorously train for professional careers, younger students from New York City are put through their paces as they rehearse and perform in New York City Ballet’s holiday classic George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker onstage at Lincoln Center.
On Pointe is produced by Imagine Documentaries and DCTV, with Brian Grazer, Ron Howard, Sara Bernstein and Justin Wilkes executive producing from Imagine Entertainment; Matthew O’Neill serves as executive producer from DCTV. Directed and produced by Larissa Bills, On Pointe premieres Fri., Dec. 18, with all episodes streaming only on Disney+.
Make room under your tree. The iconic Reese’s brand is bringing you some fun new offerings for the holiday season. If you love peanut butter and chocolate, these items are the perfect festive treat.
Reese’s White Elephant
There are no surprises here. This is a White Elephant gift that everyone will vie for. This new Reese’s product takes the classic peanut butter filling you love, wraps it in white crème and molds it into an unmistakable shape perfect for any holiday party. The box even features a “To and From” label so there is no need to wrap it. The Reese’s White Elephant will be available nationwide, for a limited time, in a 6 oz. box.
Reese’s Peanut Butter Nutcrackers
Make room under your tree because Reese’s Peanut Butter Nutcrackers are coming. This new festive look will be available for a limited time, in 10 and 7.8 ounce bags.
Reese’s Peanut Butter Mystery Shapes
The elves have been busy. Reese’s Mystery Shapes are returning to the holiday lineup this year. No matter which shape you get, you are guaranteed that perfect ratio of peanut butter and chocolate. These sweet shapes will be available nationwide, for a limited time, in standard 10.8 and 7.8 ounce bags.
Reese’s Miniatures Mega Cane
Reese’s is introducing its longest holiday candy yet. Perfect for sharing or for enjoying all to yourself, this nearly 2-foot long candy cane is packed with Reese’s Peanut Butter Miniatures wrapped in gold, green and red foils. The canes will be available nationwide, for a limited time.
Charlotte Nebres was only six when acclaimed dancer Misty Copeland became American Ballet Theatre’s first female African-American principal. Now Nebres is making dance history too! The 11-year-old was recently cast as the first African-American Marie in New York City Ballet’s The Nutcracker.
Nebres, who is a student at the School of American Ballet, is part of a larger cultural shift going on at the New York City Ballet. Not only is the 11-year-old breaking barriers, but the Ballet has also cast half-Chinese Tanner Quirk as Marie’s Prince, half-Korean/half-Greek Sophia Thomopoulos as the other Marie (the children’s roles are double-cast) and half-South Asian Kai Misra-Stone as the other Prince.
The young dancer recently spoke to the New York Times, talking about the first time she saw Copland perform, “When I saw someone who looked like me onstage, I thought, that’s amazing. She was representing me and all the people like me.”
Charlotte’s mother opened up to the New York Times, about her daughter’s reaction after the audition, “With that poker face of hers, she said, ‘Well, I’m Marie,’ And I just thought, oh my goodness— they really did it. I couldn’t believe it.”
Ms. Nebres also talked about her daughter’s response to finding out that she is the first African-American child cast in the role of Marie. According to the proud mom, the 11-year-old said, “Wow. That seems a little late.”
It’s that time of year to deck the halls and light up your lawn like it’s the Fourth of July. In case you’re not Clark Griswold, and you need inspiration, we’ve got you covered. Here are our top picks for the most festive outdoor Christmas decorations sure to leave your family and neighbors fa-la-la-ing all season long. Keep reading to see them all.
Movie Madness
If you can recite every line of A Christmas Story or cringe every time Cousin Eddie arrives even after the 100th viewing, then you might want to show off your love of holiday movies with a holiday lawn inflatable from one of your favorite films. You'll find inflatables for Elf, A Christmas Story, Christmas Vacation and many more at Home Depot.
What better way to brighten up your front porch than with the jolliest couple from the North Pole? Mr. and Mrs. Claus are hand-painted on five-foot cedar boards.
This seven-foot-tall inflatable snow globe will be the highlight of any front yard display. The accompanying projector makes it appear as if a live snowy Christmas scene is constantly moving inside the snow globe.
No matter what weather you're having, these twinkling snowflake lights will have you singing "Let it snow!" Each six-foot light strand features three snowflakes.
Why stick with a traditional tree, when you can light up your lawn with one that puts on a colorful show. These LED-lit trees feature 14 different animation sequences that will have you ready to compete in the Great Christmas Light Fight with hardly any work.
Nothing conjures up that classic holiday feeling like a Nutcracker. This 60-inch drumming soldier will stand guard at your front door, making sure that everything is merry.
Santa's busy elves can take a break from the North Pole to adorn your garage door with a little festive merriment. These murals easily clamp on to your garage door for easy set up.
Available at Wayfair, $220.
Projected Laser Lights
Amazon
With young kids at home, it's not always easy to find time to set up string lights on your house. A laser light projector makes it a piece of cake to light up your entire home in no time.
No one embodies the spirit of Christmas quite like the biggest Elf in the North Pole. Spread Christmas cheer to every visitor that comes by your door with this life-sized Buddy the Elf inflatable from Target.
Inspired by the holiday classic Elf, this inflatable’s impressive seven-foot-tall height will have you declaring “Son of a Nutcracker!”
The Buddy the Elf Inflatable Holiday Decoration is priced at $50 and is available at Target locations across the country. As of this writing, the inflatable is temporarily out of stock online, but it is also on sale for $40 so head to your nearest Target location if you want to score one.
If there’s one thing many of the books and stories generations have grown up reading have in common it’s that the characters all tend to look the same. A new book series, Bedtime Classics, reimagines classic stories with characters from varied backgrounds.
Kids have grown up reading the tales of Alice In Wonderland and The Nutcracker for decades. Although these stories are timeless, not all readers can identify with the characters. The new Bedtime Classics by Penguin Young Readers breathes new life and new faces into these famous stories.
As board books aimed at babies two and under, these are bite-sized versions of the lengthy narratives designed to introduce babies and toddlers to the stories illustrated with whimsical artwork by Carly Gledhill.
Both books are now available to pre-order on Amazon for $7.99 each and will be released Oct. 15. The collection will expand with more titles to come in 2020.
Already missing Christmas in July? There’s still five more months until Santa and his reindeer land on your roof, but at one inn in Tennessee you can celebrate Christmas all year.
Visitors to the Inn at Christmas Place in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee are treated to a magical wonderland filled with candy canes and twinkling lights 365 days a year. The Inn is decked out in mistletoe and holly in addition to Christmas trees, wreaths and nutcrackers all the time.
The Inn keeps the merriment going all year with a Singing Santa, a Glockenspiel that counts down the hours of each day and special holiday-themed events.
If you’ve made your holiday shopping list and checked it twice, there’s no better time to get cracking than July. In addition to Amazon’s Prime Days and rival sales from major retailers like Target, LEGO’s Christmas in July sale is the perfect excuse to get that stocking stuffed early this year.
LEGO has just announced that it will be hosting a Christmas in July sale. Master builders can score daily deals and a free gift in addition to taking advantage of sale prices on LEGO sets for brick builders of all ages.
No word yet on which sets will be included in the big summer sale, but the deals will last in-store and online from Jul. 12 to 14, or as long as supplies last. Last year’s sale included a free LEGO Nutcracker with a $99 purchase among other great deals. According to BrickShow, the gift-with-purchase set this year is likely to be last year’s limited edition Christmas Gift Box set.
It’s a new year—and that means new Disney movies on Netflix. Now that it’s 2019, expect to see some of your faves (and your kiddos’ faves too) coming to the small screen in your living room. So what movies will the streaming service bring to Disney fans in 2019?
Read on to find out the top Disney picks your littles will love watching over the next 12 months.
Photo: Courtesy of Netflix
Disney Movies New to Netflix in 2019
Christopher Robin
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Last Ark
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
Marvel Studios’ Ant-Man and the Wasp
Ralph Breaks the Internet
Solo: A Star Wars Story
The Incredibles 2
The Nutcracker and the Four Realms
Keep in mind, these are just the Disney flicks that are new to Netflix in the new year. You can still watch the following Disney flicks anytime.
Raise the bar this holiday season by starting a family tradition to see The Nutcracker. There are so many venues to behold the magic of this beloved ballet in San Diego. We twirled our way across the city to find 10 performances for you and your troupe. From a North County Nutcracker to the Moscow Ballet, scroll down for where to take your tiny dancers to see this delightful show.
Twirl into this Nutcracker production with an international cast combined with local ballerinas. You'll find dancers from China, Japan, Russia and more. Also, they include young dancers from all over San Diego County. So, put on your best look and jump at a chance to make this ballet a tradition. Even more, they dance to the classic Tchaikovsky score. This show is sure to sparkle.
A standing tradition for 25 years at the Poway Center for the Performing Arts, this Nutcracker is on pointe. Ballerinas are from the local Southern California Ballet and the performance features professional guest artists in the principal roles. Watch the toy soldiers and mice battle as you listen to the Tchaikovsky score. Even more, you'll find over 100 dancers that grace this stage.
A toddler-friendly Nutcracker performance? They have two days of a special half-pint friendly performance (and it costs less too)! Even more, they have a regular show for bigger kids. Plus, there's a cast of over 200 dancers with the youngest one age four. This holiday extravaganza follows Tchaikovsky's score played by both the Classics Philharmonics and the San Diego Symphony. Special toddler-friendly performances are on Dec. 14th and 21st at 2 p.m.
Dates: Dec. 14-16 & 21-23, various show times Price: $30 and up per person
San Diego Civic Theater 3rd Avenue & B St. San Diego, CA 92101 800-430-8903 Online: san-diego-theater.com
San Diego Civic Youth Ballet
San Diego Civic Youth Ballet
Held at the family-friendly Casa del Prado in Balboa Park, this affordable show will delight your youngest theater-goer. The performers are all part of the San Diego Civic Youth Ballet program and will take you on an extraordinary journey to the magical Land of the Sweets with Clara and her Nutcracker Prince. Enjoy a trip outside to Balboa Park after the performance.
Dates: Dec. 12-23 Cost: $12 to $18 per person
Casa del Prado 1650 El Prado San Diego, CA 92101 619-233-3060 Online: sdcyb.org
Picture stunning costumes and the pure precision of Moscow’s best ballerinas and you’ll understand why this one-night-only event is not to be missed. Pirouette with the Russian dancers who perform over 100 places each year.
Dates: Dec. 20 Cost: $58 and up per person
Copley Symphony Hall 750 B St. San Diego, CA 92101 619-235-0804 Online: san-diego-theater.com
If you enjoy live orchestra music, elaborate stages and costume design, then this is your show. Firstly, the dancers move to the music of the City Ballet Orchestra and Chorus. Even more you'll find this a professional production. Following each matinee show, members of the cast will be in the lobby to greet audience members and pose for photos.
Date: Dec. 7-9, 14-16 & 21-23 Cost: from $20-$89 per person; children 4 and under not permitted
Waltz with the flowers to this family-friendly local version of the Nutcracker. From colorful costumes and lavish sets you'll find this production both heart-warming and fun. Also, this local dance school has presented the favorite holiday ballet for over 30 years. So, grab the crew and get ready for a holiday feast for the eyes and ears.
Visit the magical land of sweets! This local ballet group performs the show with ballerinas from all levels of their academy. You'll find the story of Clara family-friendly and engaging. Even more, little ones will be thrilled at the battle of the Rat King and Nutcracker. Further, you can enjoy this performance early in the holiday season before it gets too busy.
Prance to this local ballet school's performance of the Nutcracker at the David and Dorthea Garfield Theatre in La Jolla. You'll enjoy their version of Tchaikovsky’s, The Nutcracker.
Dates: Dec. 7-9 Cost: $25-$40 per person
David and Dorthea Garfield Theatre 4126 Executive Dr. La Jolla, CA 92037 Online: tututix.com/scripps
Leap into this local North County ballet Center's presentation of Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker which features award-winning guest dancers. Between the stunning set backgrounds and adorable ballerinas, you'll be glad you took the whole crew.
Date: Dec. 12 Cost: $8-$30 per person
Moonlight Amphitheater 1200 Vale Terrace Dr. Vista, CA 92084 Online: encinitasballet.com
