Contributed PERFORMANCES PLANNED — The Canton Ballet will perform excerpts from the “Nutcracker” Nov. 29 in the theater at the Masonic Temple. The performances will be among the highlights of this year’s Steubenville Nutcracker Village, which opens Nov. 25. Cutline goes here.

STEUBENVILLE — In a little more than a week, the Christmas season will begin in earnest in downtown Steubenville, and if past years are anything to go by, residents and visitors alike will find plenty to do and see.

The Steubenville Nutcracker Village will officially open on Nov. 25, while Christmas at the Fort will get under way Nov. 28 during the Steubenville Lights Up the Night event, which will feature the lighting of the 30-foot Christmas tree in Fort Steuben Park, followed by a fireworks display.

The city will come alive with lots of festive music, food, vendors, unique gifts and, of course, life-sized nutcrackers — somewhere around 215 of them.

It is, by far, the biggest street party of the year in Steubenville, typically drawing tens of thousands of visitors.

“It’s important because it gives a positive light to those not from our area as well as those who live here, that we have things to be proud of — this is one of them,” Mayor Jerry Barilla said. “It attracts people from all over to visit the Steubenville Nutcracker Village and Christmas at the Fort.”

Barilla said anywhere between 30,000 and 50,000 people every year make their way into the downtown to welcome the holiday season.

“It’s an economic advantage to have these folks come into our community and spend money, stay at our motels, eat at our restaurants and shop in our retail stores,” he said. “So, it’s a huge economic boost for everyone in our community.”

How big of a boost? Well, Barilla said the increased foot traffic at Historic Fort Steuben alone during the holiday season “can (jumpstart) us, it usually covers at least three months of operations.”

He figures that spills over to other businesses, downtown and throughout the city and surrounding area.

“Needless to say, this nutcracker experience in city — it’s growing every year, and if we can continue to take advantages of it and improve it, as well as our Dean Martin Festival in June, that’s two major events that attract people to come to Steubenville, those are two big economic boosts.”

This year’s Nutcracker Village celebration, a partnership with the Steubenville Cultural Trust, will include dancers from the Canton Ballet, which is celebrating its 60th year, performing excerpts from the “Nutcracker” at 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. Nov. 29 in the theater at the Steubenville Masonic Temple, 227 N. Fourth St. — a first in Nutcracker Village’s 11-year history.

“Each performance will feature several dances from the most popular scenes in the ‘Nutcracker’ and will be about 45 minutes in duration,” said Therese Fedoryka of the Steubenville Cultural Trust, pointing out that particular rendition of the ballet “has enchanted families across Northeast Ohio for more than a half century, becoming a beloved holiday tradition.”

“The addition of Canton Ballet’s performance of the ‘Nutcracker’ is an exciting opportunity for the city of Steubenville, as it is the first performance of the ‘Nutcracker’ here in living memory,” she added. “After 10 years of playing Uncle Drosselmeyer and running a festival dedicated to the wide-spread fascination with the holiday tradition of the ‘Nutcracker,’ we are thrilled to share our own love for the ballet with the greater Steubenville community. We also are looking forward to sharing our many annual traditions with visitors, including George Dvorsky’s Nativity collection, spiced wine at the Gluhwein Garden and the beloved St. Nicholas Lantern Parade.”

You can purchase tickets for the performances at steubenvillenutcrackervillage.com.

“We’re very grateful to our sponsors for this year’s ballet performance — Tri-State Financial Services, Trinity Health System and Joe Luckino of Cedar One Realty,” Fedoryka added.

She said volunteers have been busy touching up the 210 nutcrackers that lined the streets last year and will be introducing a handful of new ones, handcrafted in the woodshops at Nelson’s Fine Art and Gifts.

“The nutcrackers aren’t ready for this year yet, but they will be by Nov. 25,” she said. “We are releasing five new nutcrackers that evening at our annual Kick-Off Party on North Fourth Street. Inquiries can be made to SteubenvilleNutcracker Village@gmail.com.”

Here’s a look at the some of the many activities that will be happening downtown:

• Christmas at the Fort will feature more than 20 artisan booths encircling the city’s Christas tree, complete with two model trains running around its branches.

“Families can enjoy trolley rides, puppet shows, movies and visits with St. Nicholas while strolling through the market under a canopy of lights and festive music,” said Paul Zuros, executive director of the Steubenville and Jefferson County Visitor Center. “Inside the Fort Steuben Visitor Center, guests will find letters to Santa, a model train village and a Christmas Shoppe with locally crafted gifts. The reconstructed 18th-century Fort Steuben will be open for tours for a small donation.”

• Around the corner, the Jefferson County commissioners have arranged for the return of the sound and light show that will have the courthouse awash in Christmas lights and festive music beginning with Steubenville’s light-up festivities and continuing each weekend through Christmas.

• The Sights and Sounds of Christmas Parade will begin at noon Dec. 6, filling Fourth Street with floats, dance troupes and marching bands. The parade will follow Fourth Street from North to South streets. “(And) that same day, the historic Grand Theater, currently under restoration, will open its doors for tours from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., while Historic Beatty Park hosts Christmas in the Park with a live nativity, choirs, hayrides, children’s crafts and a visit from Santa Claus,” Zuros said.

• The Historic Fort Steuben Visitor Center Gift and Museum Shop is a winter wonderland of its own, offering many Christmas gifts and decorative pieces, a selection of unusual and hard-to-find books, as well as souvenirs, postcards, maps and a selection of Native American items, including dream catchers, stones, arrow heads, jewelry and more. Beginning Wednesday, extended holiday hours at the Christmas and More Gift Shoppe will be Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Fridays and Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Sundays, noon to 6 p.m.

• The handcrafted, life-sized nutcrackers inhabiting the Steubenville Nutcracker Village, which is celebrating its 11th year as a holiday attraction, are free to see and depict characters from literature, history, film and popular culture, “(creating) dozens of photo opportunities (that have) become a signature attraction for the Ohio Valley region,” officials said.

• The Steubenville Cultural Trust, which created the Nutcracker Village, continues to expand the experience with festive activities for all ages. “Visitors can explore the Advent Market, enjoy hayrides, visit the Children’s Corner, sip warm drinks in the Gluhwein Garden and more,” Fedoryka said.

• Local students will be decorating the storefronts, and St. Paul Episcopal Church will welcome guests to its Sanctuary Garden, a peaceful retreat set in the middle of the hustle and bustle of the season, and shops throughout the downtown will feature unique holiday treats, including Nutcracker popcorn and Renaissance Coffee.

• On weekends (Fridays through Sundays) beginning Nov. 28 and continuing through Jan. 4, those of legal age will be able to indulge in adult beverages at the Gluhwein German Beer Garden; kids can enjoy a special Children’s Corner; and everybody is invited to check out the Nativity collection exhibit.

• Other Nutcracker Village highlights include the St. Nicholas Lantern Parade at 7 p.m. Dec. 5; the Wooden Heart Follies Musical at 4:30 p.m. Dec. 11-14; the Nutcracker Tea Party at 11 a.m. Dec. 13 and Dec. 14; the Nutcracker Pub Crawl from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. Dec. 13; Ben David Warner concert at 7 p.m. Dec. 19; and the Nutcracker Masquerade Ball at 6 p.m. Dec. 20.

For the Nutcracker Village’s full schedule of activities, visit steubenvillenutcrackervillage.com/schedule.html. For the full slate of activities and times for Christmas at the Fort activities, visit oldfortsteuben.com/christmas-at-the-fort.

“I think there’s a charm to it all,” Barilla said. “A lot of times people tell me, ‘You have a charming little town here.’ The architecture is beautiful, the fort is decorated nicely, the advent shops are filled with things made locally and the nutcrackers — they’re unique–there’s nothing out there like it, and to have more than 200 nutcrackers here is remarkable. It’s almost overwhelming to see that many in one location.”