For 16 years, a familiar tall wooden guy has brought dancers from around central Iowa to perform for holiday audiences.

Complete with toy soldiers, fighting mice, Arabians and the Sugar Plum Fairy, the Nutcracker Ballet will again delight audiences this weekend at C.Y. Stephens Auditorium. The ballet will be performed Friday at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday at 2 p.m.

With over 1,000 productions of the Nutcracker Ballet performed in the United States, the Nutcracker has become a holiday favorite across the country, said Robert Thomas, artistic director and choreographer for the ballet.

Thomas and his wife Miyoko Kato have been directing the ballet in Ames for 16 years.

“Our interpretation is pretty true. The 8-year-olds are actually 8-year-olds. It really adds to the realistic exuberance and natural energy of the production,” Thomas said.

To fill the fanciful cast of the Nutcracker, the directors cast 215 dancers from 25 central Iowa schools including Fort Dodge, Marshalltown, Des Moines, Boone, Nevada and Pochahontas.

Cast members must be at least 8-years-old by the time of try-outs in September, but there are no upper age limits for the ballet.

“We have a blend of all ages,” Thomas said. He said the parts of the youngest children were triple cast so they would not have to rehearse as much.

Iowa State University sophomores Elizabeth Andre and Kirsti Place will also be a part of the 1996 production. Andre, who has danced in the Nutcracker for three years, dances the part of an Arabian in the second act of this year’s production.

In her sixth year in the Nutcracker, Place will dance “en pointe” as a flower in the Land of Sweets.

“The first act tells the story of how Clara falls in love with the nutcracker,” Andre said. “In the second act, the nutcracker prince takes Clara to a magical world.” During the second act, Hungarians, Chinese, Arabians, flutes, the Sugar Plum Fairy and Caviler dance for Clara.

The roles of the Sugar Plum Fairy and Caviler will be performed by Christina Johnson, principal dancer with the Dance Theater of Harlem, and Cubie Burke, a member of the Complexions Dance Company from Las Vegas.

After learning the routine by videotape, the professional dancers flew in Wednesday to perform with the cast for the first time.

“One of the most exciting parts [of the production] is meeting the professional dancers and getting to see them dance from five or six feet away,” Andre said.

“We like to give [the student dancers] an opportunity to interact with professionals currently in the field. They can see what they can become,” Thomas said. “It’s especially exciting for the little ones.”

In addition to the performance, Johnson will also teach a master class Sunday at the Robert Thomas Dancenter.

Although Thomas and Kato have been directing and choreographing the Nutcracker for 16 years, new choreography, sets and costumes will increase the spectacle of this year’s show, Thomas said.

“Each year we update the productions. Like in sports, dancers get stronger and stronger. We enhance the choreography because their skills are stronger,” Thomas said. Because many dancers have been involved in the Nutcracker Ballet for several years and have shown an interest in the classical style of the Nutcracker, several central Iowa dance studios have begun to teach more classical ballet moves, the instructor added.

This training allows dancers to do more with their parts in the holiday ballet.

While colorful new sets and costumes will grace the stage, Thomas said the most exciting element of the set will be a tree that appears to grow on stage, making characters appear toy-like.

“The Iowa State Center did a great job of reproducing this effect,” Thomas said.

Tickets cost $10, $9 and $8 for students and $12, $11 and $10 for general admission.

Tickets are available at the Iowa State Center Ticket Office (located at Stephens Auditorium), all Ticketmaster outlets, or Charge-by-Phone at 233-1888.