The Westlake School for the Performing Arts (WSPA) proudly stages its 28th spectacular annual production of The Nutcracker. This full-length classical ballet serves as a developmental rite of passage for more than 100 elite youth dancers, who advance from playing mice to mastering principal roles under founder Malu Rivera-Peoples. Staged at the San Mateo Performing Arts Center, this holiday tradition blends lavish scenery with the precision expected of a world-class training institution, cementing WSPA’s reputation as a 15-time Youth America Grand Prix (YAGP) Outstanding School. Young children are watching from the edge of their seats enthralled.