Christmas time is here! Drosselmeyer is hard at work preparing something special for his charge, the sweet and innocent Clara. Ornaments, tinsel, all hung with care upon the Tannenbaum (that's ChristmasTree to all you English speaking folks). The mighty tree is revealed to her utter delight and then she receives a present. A nutcracker. Very simple, but she LOVES it! But it is Christmas Eve and upon reaching her bed and slumber, begins to dream...