FUN WITH MAPS – ISSUE 2025-212

By Steve Kovacs (Introduction by Chuck Gibson)

LOVELAND, OH (December 18, 2025) – Today’s edition of Fun with Maps takes us to the stage for a Christmas tradition ballet.

A dream

The Nutcracker ballet was first performed in St. Petersburg, Russia on December 18, 1892.

It was composed by Tchaikovsky, and the plot is based on Dumas’s short story about a young girl’s dream about the nutcracker doll under the Christmas tree.  Tchaikovsky was the composer while others choreographed the original version of the ballet

It was not well received initially, but then acceptance grew.  Today, some ballet companies earn upwards to 40% of their annual income performing the Christmas classic, especially in the US.

Ballet traces its roots to Renaissance Italy but then it really took hold as a dance form in France and Russia.

This 1893 map of St. Petersburg is labelled in Cyrillic.  

Steve Kovacs and his wife Theresa reside in Loveland, Ohio where they raised their two children. He is a passionate collector of antique maps.

Visit his antique map boutique world-on-paper online. Watch for his daily feature Steve Kovacs: Fun with Maps here on Loveland Beacon.