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Like snow, every Christmas needs a nutcracker. This year, Tchaikovosky's magical ballet will be brought to the Rogue Valley by Studio Roxander. "The Nutcracker" will be the studio's second production since it opened a year ago. When Ballet Rogue closed its doors in July, after 23 annual "Nutcracker" performances, Studio Roxander took up the baton. "We sort of saw this void, ... and it just felt like somebody should pick up the torch and do it," says David Roxander, who directs Studio Roxander with wife Elyse. The couple has been teaching dance since 1988. The holiday ballet is set for 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 18, with a matinee at 2 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 19, at Crater High School Performing Arts Center, 655 N. Third St., Central Point. The ballet, based on "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King," written by E.T.A. Hoffman in 1816, opens with a Victorian Christmas scene, in which young Clara is given a nutcracker doll, which is later broken by her jealous brother, Fritz. Poor Clara falls asleep but awakens in a magical realm, complete with whimsical snowflakes, the beautiful Sugar Plum Fairy, the Kingdom of Sweets — or Confiturembourg — and her nutcracker doll, who is now transformed into a handsome prince. Roxander's production will not include the battle scene from Act 1 and the "Waltz of the Flowers" or the Arabian dance in Act 2. Roxander says he felt the real essence of the story was the relationship between Clara and her doll. "Children use their imagination as a tool to bring their toys to life," says Roxander. "We just saw 'Toy Story 3,' and this tale has been told again and again." Roxander performed in his premiere "Nutcracker" at the age of 5. Since then, he has performed more than 1,000 shows and 60 different versions of the ballet. "I'll start choreographing in the middle of Macy's when they start playing the 'Waltz of the Flowers,' " he jokes. The studio's production will feature 39 dancers, ages 6 to 20, including Alex Marshall as Clara, Ashton Roxander as the Nutcracker and Madalyn Snyder as the Sugar Plum Fairy. The studio inherited Rogue Ballet's sleigh and borrowed some of its old "Nutcracker" costuming. Several parents volunteered to create set pieces and make additional costumes for the Spanish, Chinese and Russian numbers, as well as for the shepherdess and sheep. "We're starting from scratch," says Roxander. "I'm making scenery, sleighs and thrones ... I knew that if we did it, I wanted to do it right." Tickets to the ballet are $16 for adults and $10 for children and are available at Studio Roxander, 1221 Court St., Medford, or by calling 541-773-7272. "It's as much a part of Christmas as Santa, himself," says Roxander. "I can't think of any theatrical production like this."