The Nutcracker And The Mouse King

On Christmas Eve, Marie finds a Nutcracker doll among the family's gifts and is charged by her parents to take special care of it. Under the cover of darkness, the Nutcracker comes to life, along with an evil Mouse King with seven heads, introducing Marie to the magical world of toys, and the brave Nutcracker who will change her life forever.
E. T. A. Hoffman's timeless and whimsical tale has become a Christmas classic since it was first published in 1816. It has been adapted numerous times, most notably for the ballet scored by Pyotr Ilyich Tchikovsky in 1892. Though the ballet was not immediately a success, it has become immensely popular since the late 1960s and is performed every year during the holidays by ballet companies around the world.
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E. T. A. Hoffmann (Ernst Theodor Wilhelm Hoffmann) was a German author and composer best known for his short story "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King", which was adapted into the famous ballet The Nutcracker. Educated as a lawyer, Hoffmann served as a Prussian law officer of the Polish provinces, until 1806 when he transitioned into a career as a music conductor, critic, and director. Hoffmann's breakthrough as an author came with the publication of Ritter Gluck in 1806. He then composed the opera Undine, which opened in 1814, and shortly thereafter authored the short-story collection Fantasy Pieces in Callot's Manner. Hoffmann went on to write two novels and more than fifty short stories. E.T.A. Hoffmann died in 1822 at the age of 46, but is remembered as one of the foremost authors of the Romantic Movement and for his artistic influence during the nineteenth century.