The guide is also a great way to entertain and engage children on your way to the performance. In order to prepare your child for the performance, San Francisco Ballet created a resource guide filled with word games, pictures, and easy-to-digest information that helps explain the Nutcracker plot – and Theater Etiquette 101. To see the seat layout, view the Nutcracker seating chart here. Some parents prefer the higher sections because of the slanted sitting, and often buy aisle seats to enable a quick getaway. However, because it is flat, the Orchestra section might not provide the best stage view for little kids.

The War Memorial House provides booster seats at orchestra level only, a mostly flat section closer to the stage and the orchestra pit. Orchestra or Dress Circle? Here are a few pointers. How to select the best seats for your family

If not, look for other fantastic but shorter Nutcracker ballets around the Bay Area. If your children are able to sit through a two-hour long movie without getting up, eating or kicking the seat in front of them, then they are ready for the big day.

The entire performance, including intermission, is almost two hours long and breaks down as follows: Act I is 44 minutes, intermission is 20 minutes, and Act II is 43 minutes. Before buying tickets, it’s important to realize that the San Francisco Ballet performs a full-length ballet – not a child-size Nutcracker version.

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