By Brian Trimboli –
In a crowded field of holiday activities and shows, the San Francisco Pride Band’s Dance-Along Nutcracker stands out as an only-in-San Francisco tradition: It’s part comedy musical, part dance-it-yourself ballet, and part symphonic concert.
Each year, the Dance-Along Nutcracker blends Tchaikovsky’s classic ballet with a unique theme to create an original musical production. This year, a Wicked Dance-Along Nutcracker takes its inspiration from Wicked, the beloved musical (and, since last fall, widely lauded feature film).
The band is under the direction of Guest Conductor Michael J. Wong, who will encourage audience members to experience what happens when the beloved music and stories from Wicked, The Wizard of Oz, and The Wiz come together with Tchaikovsky’s most famous work. In the show, Uncle Drosselmeyer tells Clara and Fritz a fantastical bedtime story about a school for holiday magic where the wicked Sugar Plum Fairy and her Great and Powerful Nutcracker control the student body with holiday rules that stifle all creativity and originality. With the help of a magical rat, the students rally to overcome the domineering rules they’ve been subjected to.
“As the longtime artistic director of the band’s Marching & Pep program, I’ve always been passionate about all of the visible ways the band gives back to its community, and the Dance-Along Nutcracker is no exception. This is my first time as guest conductor for the Dance-Along, and I can say pretty confidently that you’ll love this year’s show.” said Wong. “Not to mention that I’ve been performing in the Dance-Along Nutcracker as a musician for decades. It’s truly a dream come true to conduct the band for this year’s show.”
Alongside Wong, Cast Director Allen Sawyer, Music Director Steve Bolinger, and Choreographer Marilynn Fowler are leading this year’s troupe of performers. Sawyer, who also works at the San Francisco Opera House, is directing local talents Alix Feinsod Guerrero, Landyn Endo, Zelda Koznofski, Angelo Giusti, Evan Kaminsky, and Remi Sunshine. The cast brings together Bay Area performers who have deep experience as actors, musicians, and performers and have previously starred in musicals, drag shows, films, and more. Famed local crafter-of-all-things Todd Young will again be fabricating masterful props and set pieces.
“This may be the 40th Anniversary of the first Dance-Along Nutcracker, but it’s only my fourth one,” said Sara Harris, Producer of the show. Harris, also a member of the band, draws on their production experience to make many moving pieces of the show run smoothly. “I couldn’t be more excited to be bringing this production to four audiences of so many young people. Everyone in the Official Band of San Francisco shares my enthusiasm about this ‘Wickedly Good’ show.”
The Dance-Along Nutcracker was the brainchild of a few band members in 1985 who thought it would be great to have an audience participation version of the ballet for an LGBTQ+ adult audience. The show was an instant hit, although “it was challenging in the early years to persuade people to leave their seats and dance-along,” said a band member who has participated in each of the 40 shows. They further remembered that “in the early 1990s, we noticed the audience began to change from mostly LGBTQ+ adults to more and more families with small children. This organic shift was fascinating to witness, and the show began to change accordingly. Some of the adult humor was removed, the story lines became more kid-friendly, and show times changed from mostly evening performances to today, where 3 of the 4 shows are matinees.”
The show is written by members of the band, which ensures that it stays true to the band’s values of creating a community where music, education, and visibility converge to promote understanding and inclusivity. It also ensures that the show is unique each year—in the past, the show has been inspired by themes as varied and far flung as The Nightmare Before Christmas, the Wild West (Blazing Nutcrackers), San Francisco’s Summer of Love (Clara’s Magical Mystery Tour), and last year’s Mission: Nutcracker, a riff on classic spy tales.
This is not the first time that the Dance-Along Nutcracker has taken inspiration from The Wizard of Oz and its legacy. Ten years ago, for the 30th anniversary, the show also brought audiences down the yellow brick road for The Nutcracker of Oz.
The story of The Wizard of Oz has always been near and dear to many members of the LGBTQ+ community, so much so that “Friend of Dorothy” has long served as an if-you-know-you-know epithet for a queer person. The story of Wicked—as told in Gregory Maguire’s 1995 novel—draws on feelings of “otherness” that are familiar to many members of the LGBTQ+ community. For that reason, the musical, and now movies, have always resonated with many queer viewers. Many viewers and critics have even read a queer subtext into the relationship between Galinda and Elphaba, especially in last year’s Wicked movie.
As the first openly gay music organization in the world, San Francisco Pride Band has inspired the formation of lesbian and gay bands, choruses, and performing troupes worldwide. In 2018, in honor of its 40th anniversary, the group was named the Official Band of the City and County of San Francisco.
The San Francisco Pride Band is proud to have worked with the San Francisco Bay Times and “Betty’s List” for over 25 years running. Since 1997, they and their teams have been stalwart supporters of this annual show.
When: Saturday December 6 (3 pm and 7 pm) and Sunday December 7 (11 am and 3 pm)
Where: Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Forum (701 Mission Street, San Francisco), walking distance from the Powell & Montgomery Street Muni and BART stations
Tickets: General admission: $28 for children, students, and seniors; $48 for adults
Find more information and tickets at https://bit.ly/4r85sS7
Brian Trimboli plays euphonium in the San Francisco Pride Band and serves on the Board of Directors. He is excited about performing in his sixth Dance-Along Nutcracker.
Arts & Entertainment
Published on November 20, 2025
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