When COVID-19 quarantine restrictions force the 2020 cancellation of Lincoln Center’s annual holiday production of The Nutcracker for the first time since 1964, a group of unemployed New York City Ballet dancers find an unexpected haven at a fairy-tale estate in the Hudson Valley. With an original staging for a masked and largely outdoor audience, the dancers channel the spirit of the classic score into a beacon of wonder during a dark time. In documenting, DOC NYC alumna Anne Sundberg grasps the vital core of the production: how to find hope to persevere, then and now.