Arts Umbrella's festive Mixed Nuts returns to the Vancouver Playhouse, December 12 to 14

This spin on Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker features a flavoursome assortment of styles, ranging from classical ballet to hip hop

Arts Umbrella Dance Company presents Mixed Nuts, a modern and engaging twist on Tchaikovsky’s classic The Nutcracker, at the Vancouver Playhouse from December 12 to 14.

Performed annually each holiday season, Mixed Nuts brings together a flavoursome assortment of dance styles for an extra-special festive treat. Grounded in classical ballet, the production also features hip hop, ballroom, and contemporary dance.

Mixed Nuts is performed by the Arts Umbrella Dance Company, a pre-professional repertory company made up of more than 85 members from the Professional Training Program and Post-Secondary Program. Dancers range in age from 12 to 22. The company has been led by artistic director Artemis Gordon since 1992.

Mixed Nuts is generously supported by Tom Ferries and Lisa Pankratz. Performances take place on December 12 at 7 pm, December 13 at 2 pm and 7 pm, and December 14 at 2 pm.

Tickets are now on sale through Arts Umbrella.

Post sponsored by Arts Umbrella.

Featured

Meera Sreenarayanan tells universal stories in wordless language of traditional dance

Performer’s lifelong immersion in the forms of Bharatanatyam will create space for new audience responses at Mandala Arts and Culture event

At The Dance Centre, Wen Wei Wang’s Last Solo draws on a lifetime of movement and expression

The celebrated Vancouver artist reflects on his youth, sexuality, and aging in a final solo performance

Compagnie Catherine Gaudet’s ODE explores the relentless push for happiness

Dancers perform an increasingly surreal and unsettling ritual when the Montreal troupe brings its latest work to the DanceHouse program

Mandala Arts and Culture Society hosts two world-renowned dancers, October 24 and 25

India’s Meera Sreenarayanan and Toronto’s Tanveer Alam bring bharata natyam and Kathak to the Roundhouse

Ballet BC Annex tours to Alliance Française Vancouver, October 30

Junior ensemble’s triple bill includes Out Innerspace’s Last Flower as well as world premieres from Cameron Fraser-Monroe and Michael Garcia

Ballet BC opens landmark 40th anniversary season with Bodies & Voices, November 5 to 7

Double bill from Imre and Marne van Opstal includes a world premiere and a collaboration with the Vancouver Chamber Choir

Wen Wei Dance’s Last Solo debuts at The Dance Centre, October 23

Choreographer-performer Wen Wei Wang collaborates with sound artist Gary James Joynes to explore memory and mortality

At The Dance Centre, Tasha Faye Evans’s Cedar Woman honours a legacy of Coast Salish women

Rooted in the cultural teachings of the Ancestor’s Eye, the dance and theatre artist’s work draws on a traditional Coast Salish story of hope and resilience

Dance Victoria celebrates 30 years of world-class artistry with a bold new season

Highlights include Greece’s The Lion and the Wolf, New York’s Martha Graham Dance Company, and Vancouver’s own Kidd Pivot

DanceHouse presents Compagnie Catherine Gaudet's ODE, October 23 and 24

Quebec-based company delivers a haunting, hypnotic exploration of the personal costs of performative positivity

Stir Cheat Sheet: 5 shows to set emotions on fire at the Vancouver Flamenco Festival

Montreal-based guitarist Philippe Jean, Spanish innovator Víctor Fernández, and more hit Flamenco Rosario’s annual celebration

Pop Up Dances turns Vancouver Public Library into a stage

Two-day festival from New Works Dance allows companies like Generous Mess to find new freedom of movement in non-traditional spaces that include staircases and rooftop gardens

Tasha Faye Evans' Cedar Woman debuts at The Dance Centre, October 1 to 3

Global Dance Connections piece tells a Coast Salish story of ancestral resilience and hope

Chutzpah! Festival unveils 2026 programming, with actor Ari’el Stachel, comedian Jacob Samuel, dance artist Meghann Michalsky, and more

The 26th annual edition spans theatre, dance, comedy, and music from November 3 to 15

The Shadbolt Centre presents a triple bill from the dancers of Ballet BC Annex, October 18

Program includes world premieres by Cameron Fraser-Monroe and Michael Garcia, along with a remount of Out Innerspace’s Last Flower

Alex Mah’s birdcage explores identity, family, and migration at EDAM, September 3 to 5

Part of the Pi Provocateurs Performing Arts Series, the new work finds the Vancouver interdisciplinary artist performing with violinist Ilana Waniuk

Pi Theatre and EDAM present the world premiere of birdcage, September 3 to 5

Meditative piece is a collaboration between interdisciplinary artist Alex Mah and violinist Ilana Waniuk

Improv Butoh rises again at Kokoro Dance’s KW Studios, August 21

Guitarist Cole Schmidt performs at a jazz-driven music-and-dance series reborn after the June passing of Tony Wilson

Vancouver Flamenco Festival unveils vibrant lineup for 36th edition, September 19 to 27

Highlights include a collaboration between Spanish guest artist Víctor Fernández and Flamenco Rosario, free outdoor performances, and more

The Dance Centre reveals 40th anniversary season for 2026-27

Forecast’s dive into dance and Youtube, Tasha Faye Evans’s Cedar Woman, Wen Wei Wang’s final solo, and Montreal’s Ebnflōh are just some of the highlights

Belle Spirale Dance Projects announces 2026-27 season that features European debut and The Little Match Girl with live choral music

September’s Censored Opera Festival in Helsinki is followed by collaboration with Vancouver Chamber Choir in November

DANCEStir VancouverNovember 14, 2025Partner Content, Arts Umbrella, ARTS UMBRELLA, Mixed Nuts, Holiday 2025

Arts Umbrella's festive Mixed Nuts returns to the Vancouver Playhouse, December 12 to 14

This spin on Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker features a flavoursome assortment of styles, ranging from classical ballet to hip hop

Arts Umbrella Dance Company presents Mixed Nuts, a modern and engaging twist on Tchaikovsky’s classic The Nutcracker, at the Vancouver Playhouse from December 12 to 14.

Performed annually each holiday season, Mixed Nuts brings together a flavoursome assortment of dance styles for an extra-special festive treat. Grounded in classical ballet, the production also features hip hop, ballroom, and contemporary dance.

Mixed Nuts is generously supported by Tom Ferries and Lisa Pankratz. Performances take place on December 12 at 7 pm, December 13 at 2 pm and 7 pm, and December 14 at 2 pm.

Tickets are now on sale through Arts Umbrella.

Related Articles

Check out our Instagram @stirvancouver

CONTACT US

LINKS