Ellen Mullen enjoys the music, dancing and choreography of “The Nutcracker,” but for her, the ballet is also a family tradition.

Mullen, an Ames resident, has performed in “The Nutcracker” about a dozen times, including the very first performance 29 years ago. However, it wasn’t until a few years ago that she decided to introduce her children to the classic piece she performed as a child.

“It’s something I never imagined when I think back 29 years ago,” Mullen said. “It’s just an amazing thing for us to do as a family. It’s quite a family tradition. For my kids, including me, Nutcracker week is their favorite week of the year.”

Mullen and her three daughters have been making “The Nutcracker” a tradition for five years now. Her twin daughters, Allie and Leanna, became part of the production at the age of 10. Her other daughter, Liz, joined the cast when she was 8 years old.

Her daughters have performed a variety of roles over the years including angels, soldiers and Indian boys. This year her twins are performing as snow flurries and her youngest as the flower in addition to the Raggedy Ann doll.

Ellen was cast as Frau Silberhaus, the mother of Clara, one of the lead characters. Mullen said that although this will be the second year she has performed this character, she’s played a wide variety roles in the past.

“It’s fun to get to try as many parts as possible, especially when you’re hooked on ‘The Nutcracker’ like me and my kids are,” Mullen said. “That is a part I hadn’t played before. It’s a fairly big role for an adult and quite an honor to get to play that part.”

Mullen was originally attracted to “The Nutcracker” as a young dancer. When the directors of this show moved to town years ago, they opened a dance studio and started the production.

Mullen said that because she had never had the opportunity to dance in a show at that magnitude, she considered the show as an incredible opportunity.

Since her start as a child, Mullen has obtained many fond memories from over the years. The best, she said, was from a production last season when she and her daughters were all on stage together.