Local dancer in “The Nutcracker” production

Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky was less than impressed with his ballet, “The Nutcracker,” but that view is hardly shared by anyone else. While many dance schools stage their own presentations of the famous ballet, it’s every ballerina’s dream to be part of a major production. That dream came true for nine-year-old Brianna Kislak of Milford who was chosen among some 80 local dancers for the Moscow Ballet performance at a recent audition in Sparta, N.J. She is a student at the Nina Beecher Dance Studio in Dingmans Ferry. “The Nutcracker” will be performed on Dec. 10, 7:30 p.m., at the Sussex County Vo-Tech Auditorium. (Photo by Amy Cilli)