The holidays came early for six Sequoia performers who danced their way through the Nutcracker ballet Sunday Dec. 6 at the Fox Theater.

Freshman Ellis Spickermann, sophomores Harper Goulden and Lauren Chamberlain and juniors Wyatt Gilman, Nate Bartoshuk and Sadie Rhen performed in Ballet America’s annual performances of the classic holiday ballet alongside professional dancers from the Bay Area and other community members ranging in age from around four to 45 years old. The cast included over 100 dancers and performed four shows in total– two on Friday for elementary school students and two on Sunday.

“It’s just a really fun, festive show,” Goulden said. “I think just being on stage and being with the people really pays off.”

The performers began practicing in early September, and rehearsals were held every Saturday.

Gilman performed the role of the Nutcracker Prince, acting and partner dancing with a ballerina from St. Francis High School. Gilman’s first experience performing was in the Nutcracker as a child, and he now takes ballet lessons at Academy of American Ballet, the studio where most of the younger dancers in the show are from.

“I was in the Nutcracker for the first time when I was seven years old,” Gilman said. “I was a baby mouse, which involves running onto the stage, running in a circle and running off, so essentially you’re just being cute, but because of that I’ve never really had stage fright.”

Spickermann, Goulden and Chamberlain danced on pointe. Goulden has been dancing ballet and performing in the Nutcracker for four years, the past two and a half on pointe.

“It’s really fun now that I’m on pointe because you get bigger parts, and also all the little kids look up to you and think you’re really amazing because you’re on pointe,” Goulden said.

She danced with a partner for the first time in this year’s performance, and her partner was  a professional dancer who started coming six weeks after rehearsals started, leaving the Goulden only less than a month to learn her dances.

“I [had] never partnered before, so it was really hard to figure out. You have to change the way you dance to make it easier for him to lift you,” Goulden said.

With this year’s Nutcracker season over, the performers have begun the nine month wait until next year’s rehearsals begin.

“It’s been really fun,” Gilman said. I enjoy doing it, and I look forward to doing it again next year.”