As part of our growing collection, The Cottage Shop offers the De Carlini Nutcracker Set Italian Christmas Ornaments. As a member, you will be notified as we receive new styles and have the opportunity to purchase them before becoming available to the public. If you are not a member, join today and receive $10.00 off your first purchase!
In 1816, E.T.A. Hoffmann published The Nutcracker and the Mouse King which tells a story about a young girl whose favorite toy, the Nutcracker, comes to life and after battling the evil Mouse King, takes her away to a magical kingdom populated by dolls. Hoffmann was known to write about wild fights of imagination that portrayed tragic dark sides of human nature. In 1844, Alexandre Dumas published an adaption to this dark fairy-tale which his romance of childhood imagination inspired Pyotr Tchaikovsky to compose The Nutcracker Ballet in 1892. The Imperial Russian Ballet choreographer Marius Petipa had fallen ill so the premiere performance was choreographed by a less interested assistant and Tchaikovsky was very disappointed. Unfortunately, Tchaikovsky did not live to see the success of his ballet. Today, The Nutcracker is the most frequently performed ballets in the world and is an annual tradition around Christmas.
In 1973, Boris Stepantsev directed the animated short film, Nutcracker. It was partly based on the ballet and Hoffmann’s novel with some changed elements. The main character is a young chambermaid and the mouse king has 3 heads with 1 crown whereas the novel depicts him with 7 heads with 7 crowns.
Another loose adaption was produced by Takeo Nakamura in 1979 called Nutcracker Fantasy. This Japanese stop motion animated film features a young girl named Clara who finds herself in a magical world where toys come to life and must fight the evil mice before returning home. This film received the Young Artist Award for Best Musical Entertainment Featuring Youth in 1980.
Even the Barbie franchise came out with their animated film in 2001 called Barbie in the Nutcracker which won the Video Premiere Award the same year.
In 2018, Walt Disney Pictures produced the fantasy adventure film, The Nutcracker and the Four Realms. This film received 8 nominations and Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures received the ReFrame Stamp award for this production.
The De Carlini Nutcracker Prince Christmas Ornament has a blue painted jacket and red paints with nutcracker details painted on the face.
The De Carlini Nutcracker Mouse King Christmas Ornament is ready for battle with a sword in his hand and a crown on his head!
The De Carlini Drosselmeier Nutcracker Ornament is decorated in a green jacket with a gold cape.
The De Carlini Clara Christmas Ornament has curly blonde hair with a gold ribbon and a white laced dress with blue coat.
Weather you buy one or the full set, these items would make the perfect Christmas gift for all ages!
