CU Ballet announces this year’s Nutcracker performances will move to The Virginia Theatre
After many years at Krannert Center, this will be a big move for the annual Champaign-Urbana holiday tradition
Attendees of CU Ballet’s “The Little Mermaid” opened their programs to find some news this past week — The Nutcracker is moving to The Virginia Theatre for the December 2026 performances.
Since 2001, CU Ballet has performed the Nutcracker at the Tryon Festival Theatre in Krannert Center for the Performing Arts, located on the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign campus. In December, it will move to the much larger Virginia Theatre in downtown Champaign, with performances scheduled for Dec. 4-6.
The reason for the move: more seats.
“This last season our Nutcracker played to sold-out audiences and still had a wait list,” CU Ballet executive director Kay Greene said. “The move to the 1,463-seat Virginia will allow this beloved and ever-popular holiday favorite ample room to continue to grow its audience after a 20-plus year successful run inside the beautiful Tryon Festival Theatre at Krannert. The additional seating capacity at the Virginia will allow us to expand our audience capacity by 500 patrons per performance, potentially increasing our total audience by 2,500.
“The more performances we can bring to the community, the more awareness we create about the art of ballet, which aligns with our mission.”
The CU Ballet Nutcracker is a uniquely local treasure that punches well above its weight in production value and quality with gorgeous costumes, sumptuous sets and magical props. Filled with homegrown talent, audiences have watched as dancers return year after year to perform.
The setting at Krannert Center certainly has contributed to the mystique of The Nutcracker experience. Families take photos with the life-sized Nutcrackers that adorned the lobby. One of its traditions was the sale of ballet-themed cupcakes in the lobby during intermission.
CU Ballet performs at the Virginia during other times of the year, including its annual spring ballet which generally takes place the first weekend of May.
The Nutcracker cast includes children as young as age 5, and no experience is required for the youngest dancers. Auditions are typically in late August and early September. Rehearsals take place throughout the fall.
No announcement has been made regarding ticket sales. For more information on Nutcracker auditions, watch the CU Ballet website.