The Nutcracker is an 1892 two-act ballet choreographed by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov with a score by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The libretto is adapted from E. T. A. Hoffmann's story "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King". Although the original production was not a success, the 20-minute suite that Tchaikovsky extracted from the ballet was. However, the complete Nutcracker has enjoyed enormous popularity since the late 1960s and is now performed by countless ballet companies during the Christmas season in North America. Major American ballet companies generate around 40% of their annual ticket revenues from performances of The Nutcracker; the ballet's score has been used in several film adaptations of Hoffmann's story. Tchaikovsky's score has become one of his most famous compositions. Among other things, the score is noted for its use of the celesta, an instrument that the composer had employed in his much lesser known symphonic ballad The Voyevoda. After the success of The Sleeping Beauty in 1890, Ivan Vsevolozhsky, the director of the Imperial Theatres, commissioned Tchaikovsky to compose a double-bill program featuring both an opera and a ballet.

The opera would be Iolanta. For the ballet, Tchaikovsky would again join forces with Marius Petipa, with whom he had collaborated on The Sleeping Beauty; the material Petipa chose was an adaptation of E. T. A. Hoffmann's story "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King", by Alexandre Dumas called "The Story of a Nutcracker"; the plot of Hoffmann's story was simplified for the two-act ballet. Hoffmann's tale contains a long flashback story within its main plot titled "The Tale of the Hard Nut", which explains how the Prince was turned into the Nutcracker; this had to be excised for the ballet. Petipa gave Tchaikovsky detailed instructions for the composition of each number, down to the tempo and number of bars; the completion of the work was interrupted for a short time when Tchaikovsky visited the United States for twenty-five days to conduct concerts for the opening of Carnegie Hall. Tchaikovsky composed parts of The Nutcracker in Rouen, France; the first performance of the ballet was held as a double premiere together with Tchaikovsky's last opera, Iolanta, on 18 December 1892, at the Imperial Mariinsky Theatre in Saint Petersburg, Russia.

Although the libretto was by Marius Petipa, who choreographed the first production has been debated. Petipa began work on the choreography in August 1892. Although Ivanov is credited as the choreographer, some contemporary accounts credit Petipa; the performance was conducted by Italian composer Riccardo Drigo, with Antonietta Dell'Era as the Sugar Plum Fairy, Pavel Gerdt as Prince Coqueluche, Stanislava Belinskaya as Clara, Sergei Legat as the Nutcracker-Prince, Timofey Stukolkin as Drosselmeyer. Unlike in many productions, the children's roles were performed by real children – students of the Imperial Ballet School in Saint Petersburg, with Belinskaya as Clara, Vassily Stukolkin as Fritz – rather than adults; the first performance of The Nutcracker was not deemed a success. The reaction to the dancers themselves was ambivalent. While some critics praised Dell'Era on her pointework as the Sugar Plum Fairy, one critic called her "corpulent" and "podgy". Olga Preobrajenskaya as the Columbine doll was panned by one critic as "completely insipid" and praised as "charming" by another.

Alexandre Benois described the choreography of the battle scene as confusing: "One can not understand anything. Disorderly pushing about from corner to corner and running backwards and forwards – quite amateurish."The libretto was criticized as "lopsided" and for not being faithful to the Hoffmann tale. Much of the criticism focused on the featuring of children so prominently in the ballet, many bemoaned the fact that the ballerina did not dance until the Grand Pas de Deux near the end of the second act; some found the transition between the mundane world of the first scene and the fantasy world of the second act too abrupt. Reception was better for Tchaikovsky's score; some critics called it "astonishingly rich in detailed inspiration" and "from beginning to end, melodious and characteristic". But this was not unanimous, as some critics found the party scene "ponderous" and the Grand Pas de Deux "insipid". In 1919, choreographer Alexander Gorsky staged a production which eliminated the Sugar Plum Fairy and her Cavalier and gave their dances to Clara and the Nutcracker Prince, who were played by adults instead of children.

This was the first production to do so. An abridged version of the ballet was first performed outside Russia in Budapest in 1927, with choreography by Ede Brada. In 1934, choreographer Vasili Vainonen staged a version of the work that addressed many of the criticisms of the original 1892 production by casting adult dancers in the roles of Clara and the Prince, as Gorsky had; the Vainonen version influenced several productions. The first complete performance outside Russia took place in England in 1934, staged by Nicholas Sergeyev after Petipa's original choreography. Annual performances of the ballet have been staged there since 1952. Another abridged version of the ballet, performed by the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, was staged in New York City in 1940, Alexandra Fedorova – again, after Petipa's version; the ballet's first complete United States performance was on 24 December 1944, by the San Francisco Ballet

Anita Pistone is a track and field sprint athlete who competes internationally for Italy. Pistone represented Italy at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, she competed at the 100 metres sprint and placed second in her first round heat after Muna Lee in a time of 11.43. She qualified for the second round in which she failed to qualify for the semi finals as her time of 11.56 was the sixth time of her race. Together with Vincenza Calì, Giulia Arcioni and Audrey Alloh she took part in the 4x100 metres relay. In their first round heat they were however eliminated for the final. 4×100 metres relay: 43.04 - with Audrey Alloh, Giulia Arcioni, Vincenza Calì - current holder Italy national relay team Italian all-time lists - 4x100 metres relay Anita Pistone at World Athletics Evans, Hilary. "Anita Pistone". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC

Henricus is a given name. People with the name include: Henry of Avranches, French poet Henry, English clergyman who may or may not have existed and, according to legend, died a martyr Henry of Friemar known as Henricus de Vrimaria or Henricus de Frimaria, German Augustinian theologian Henry of Marcy known as Henricus Albanensis, Henricus Cisterciensis, etc. Cistercian abbot and Cardinal Bishop of Albano Henry of Latvia, Roman Catholic priest and historian from Magdeburg Henry of Segusio known as Henricus de Segusio, Italian canonist Henry of Settimello, late 12th-century Italian poet Henry Aristippus, religious scholar and Archdeacon of Catania Heinrich Blyssen, German Jesuit controversialist against the Hussites of Bohemia Harry van Bommel, Dutch politician, anti-globalization activist and former educator Johann Heinrich Bösenselle, professor of law and Rector of the University of Olomouc Henricus Canisius, Dutch canonist and historian Enrico Dandolo, Latinized as Henricus Dandulus, 42nd Doge of Venice Harry Droog, Dutch retired rower Henk van Gerven, Dutch politician and physician Henricus Grammateus, German mathematician Henricus von Gunterrodt, author of a treatise on fencing published in 1579 Hendrik Herp, Flemish Franciscan Hendrik Hondius I, Flemish engraver and publisher Henricus Hondius II, Dutch engraver and publisher, unrelated to the above Henricus Hornkens, Roman Catholic priest and lexicographer Servais Knaven, Dutch retired cyclist Heinrich Kramer, Latinized as Henricus Institor, German churchman and inquisitor Heinrich Isaac, Netherlandish Renaissance composer Henri Justel known as Henricus Justellus, French scholar and royal administrator Henk Kamp, Dutch politician and Minister of Economic Affairs Hans Kuypers, Dutch neuroscientist Harry Lubse, Dutch retired footballer Henricus Martellus Germanus, Latinized name of Heinrich Hammer, German geographer and cartographer who worked in Florence from 1480 to 1496 Henricus Madathanus, pseudonym of Adrian von Mynsicht, German alchemist Han van Meegeren, Dutch painter and notorious art forger Hans van Mierlo, Dutch politician, party leader, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defense and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands Herkus Monte, the most famous leader of the Great Prussian Uprising against the Teutonic Knights and Northern Crusaders Henricus Münstermann, German Roman Catholic priest and Abbot of Marienfeld Henk Nieuwkamp, Dutch retired cyclist Harry Peeters, Dutch historian and academic Heinrich Petraeus, German physician and writer Henricus Petrus, Swiss printer Henricus Regius, Dutch philosopher and professor of medicine Henricus Reneri, Dutch philosopher H. G. van de Sande Bakhuyzen, Dutch astronomer Henrich Smet known as Henricus Smetius Alostanus or Henricus Smetius a Leda, Flemish physician and humanist scholar Henk van Spaandonck, Dutch footballer Henri Estienne known as Henricus Stephanus, French printer and classical scholar Henri Valois known as Henricus Valesius, French philologist and historian Rick VandenHurk, Dutch baseball pitcher in Japan Henricus van de Wetering, Dutch Archbishop of Utrecht and Primate of the Netherlands Henricus Franciscus Wiertz, painter from the Northern Netherlands Hendrick Zwaardecroon, Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies