CALGARY -- Thanks to the pandemic, Alberta Ballet's Nutcracker will not be gracing the stage of the Jubilee this year, but the dance company found a way to keep the tradition alive by shooting it as a film.

The short film, shot in Calgary's Fairmont Palliser Hotel, features Alberta Ballet dancer Jennifer Gibson as The Sugar Plum Fairy, is available for viewing on YouTube.

The ballet company first presented The Nutcracker more than 29 years ago, and since that auspicious debut, have performed four unique versions. The current version is by Edmund Stripe, which has been performed since 2008.

The ballet employs over 100 people behind the scenes to produce The Nutcracker, everyone from carpenters to prop experts, to lighting techs and wardrobe wizards, and each performance features a cast that includes up to 100 student dancers.

It was also the first ballet for numerous Alberta dancers, including Kelly McKinlay, who first performed in it at the age of three, and dancer Seira Iwamoto.

The show is also a box office performer that produces a large chunk of revenue for the company.

"This cancellation of Nutcracker now for two years is going to obviously affect us in many ways," said artistic director Jean Grand-Maitre. "Not just artistic, financial but also for the dancers who have the shortest career of any artist."