A Colorado Nutcracker

It’s Christmas Eve, 1907, at the beautiful Glen Eyrie home of railroad magnate and Colorado Springs founder Gen. William J. Palmer. His daughters Elsie, Dorothy, and Marjorie have made a special effort to bring holiday cheer to their doting father--who now uses a wheelchair due to a horseback riding accident in Garden of the Gods last year. The Palmer family invited all the city’s founding families to the event--as well as world-renowned electrical scientist Nikola Tesla, who is preparing some magic for the celebration. Salvation Army workers are bringing local orphans to share in the festivities. A young orphan girl named Clara is captivated by all the happenings of the day. Nikola Tesla notices her almost immediately and decides that Clara is the worthy young lady on whom he should bestow the most extraordinary gift of the season - an enchanted Nutcracker doll! Clara adores her gift and holds the Nutcracker doll in her arms as she falls asleep on the swing in the Great Hall. At the stroke of midnight, she awakens to see a ferocious Rat King who came to challenge the Nutcracker Prince in battle. Toy soldiers come to life to defend the Nutcracker Prince while the mouse army rallies behind their king. When the Nutcracker Prince and the Rat King engage in mortal combat, Clara saves the Prince by distracting the Rat King at a critical moment in the battle. Clara’s love and heroics set the Nutcracker Prince free from his spell, and he comes to life! In gratitude, the Prince takes Clara through a Colorado winter wonderland to the delightful Land of Sweets, where she meets the Sugar Plum Fairy, Mother Nature, and other characters from the magical land. Later, when Clara wakes up, she wonders, ‘Was it all just a beautiful dream?’ It doesn’t matter because she will never forget this remarkable Christmas Eve!

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