'Nutcracker' to 'Tango' - holiday visions of dance

ODC/Dance, "The Velveteen Rabbit": This is the 24th annual revival for this charming setting of Margery Wilson's classic children's story. KT Nelson is the choreographer, the composer is Benjamin Britten and Geoff Hoyle narrates this fable about that stuffed but eternally resilient animal and the kids who love him. You can bet on ODC's superlative dancing. Nov. 26-Dec. 13. Novellus Theater, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, 700 Howard St., San Francisco. (415) 978-2787. www.ybca.org.

Smuin Ballet, "The Christmas Ballet, 2010 Edition": Nobody will be bored by this chocolate box of short seasonal dances, some of them reverent, others a mite lighthearted. New this year: Amy Seiwert's dance for 12, inspired by "Carol of the Bells," and Amy London's take on "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year." Ballet, tap, hula - yuletide arrives in several guises in this merry melange. Nov. 26-27, Lesher Center for the Arts, 1601 Civic Drive, Walnut Creek. $49-$59 (925) 943-7469. Dec. 8-12, Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts, 500 Castro St., Mountain View. $20-$62. (650) 903-6000. Dec. 15-24, Novellus Theater, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, 700 Howard St., San Francisco. $20-$62. (415) 978-2787. www.smuinballet.org.

Mark Foehringer Dance Project/SF, "Nutcracker at the Zeum": This winning entertainment's successful bow last year almost guaranteed a return engagement this season. Designed for children (all performances given in the daytime), this "Nutcracker" runs 50 minutes, features fanciful sets and costumes by Peter Crompton and Richard Battle and comes with live music by the Magik-Magik Orchestra, made up of indecently talented seniors from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Nov. 27-Dec. 19, Zeum, San Francisco Children's Museum, 221 Fourth St., San Francisco. $25. (415) 433-1325. www.brownpapertickets.com.

San Francisco Ballet, "Nutcracker": Willam Christensen had little idea of how he would influence the dance scene when, in 1944, he created the first American "Nutcracker" for the San Francisco Ballet. The piece still means the Christmas season for millions of people and often represents their first encounter with dance. Artistic Director Helgi Tomasson created San Francisco's current version in 2004 and gave it a local twist by setting it here in 1915, when the ongoing Panama-Pacific International Exposition was the stuff of fantasy. Michael Yeargan's sets and Martin Pakledinaz's costumes shimmer with period glamour. The dancing may take your breath away. Dec. 9-27. War Memorial Opera House, 301 Van Ness, San Francisco. $30-$250. (415) 865-2000. www.sfballet.org.

Ballet San Jose, "Nutcracker": Artistic Director Dennis Nahat brought his version of the seasonal classic to the South Bay in 1985; since then it has kept Silicon Valley purring with pleasure. Instead of a Candyland banquet, Nahat proposes a journey to world capitals, where, oddly, everybody dances. David Guthrie's decor retains its charms. Dwight Oltman conducts. Dec. 11-26. Center for the Performing Arts, 255 Almaden Blvd., San Jose. $30-$100. (408) 288-2820. www.balletsj.org.

"Forever Tango": Enough with the sugarplums, already. If you'd like to leaven all that sweetness with something a little spicier during this holiday season, this is the place. Luis Bravo's tango revue, which premiered in San Francisco in 1994 and last played here two years ago, returns with 14 dancers and an 11-piece onstage orchestra. The current cast includes Cheryl Burke, two-time "Dancing With the Stars" champion. Dec. 21-Jan. 9. Marines Memorial Theatre, 609 Sutter St., San Francisco. $45-$100. (415) 771-6900. www.marinesmemorialtheatre.com.

Oakland Ballet Company, "Nutcracker": After a worrisome interregnum, Oakland Ballet Company has a new artistic director. He is Graham Lustig, former head of the American Repertory Ballet in Princeton, N.J. Lustig, who is planning a mixed program for the spring, makes his bow with his own "Nutcracker," never before seen in the Bay Area. The production boasts sets and costumes by Zack Brown and, reportedly, will fill the Paramount stage with happy, dancing children. Michael Morgan conducts the Tchaikovsky score. Dec. 23-26. Paramount Theatre of the Arts, 2025 Broadway, Oakland. $35-$50. (510) 465-6400. www.oaklandballet.org. {sbox}

E-mail Allan Ulrich at pinkletters@sfchronicle com.

This article appeared on page Q - 21 of the San Francisco Chronicle