Bellevue Youth Theatre is bringing something new to the world of theater, and it is using those new to theater to do it.

“The Nutcracker” is a time-honored tradition on the stage, but art director Stanko Milov is using children and a more developed script in his production for a new take on Tchaikovsky’s classic.

“For the first time ever it is a complete musical with dialogue and music,” he said. “We are telling the story through different mediums.”

“The Nutcracker Musical” is arranged and choreographed by Milov, a Bulgarian immigrant who has been a world-class ballet dancer for decades. More than 50 local children and their family members are in the production.

Milov said the point of the show wasn’t to make it a broadway smash, but to teach the children how to be part of something bigger.

“It’s a workshop for building life-long skills,” he said. “My reward is seeing them get that higher purpose.”

Milov also runs the Global Organization for Arts and Leadership (GOAL) which seeks to teach kids those life skills and confidence they might learn from being part of a theater production.

The show begins  Dec. 17 at 7 p.m. at the Bellevue Youth Theatre at Crossroads Community Center & Park. It will run through Sunday, Dec. 20th with shows at 7 p.m. Two matinees on Saturday and Sunday will begin at 2 p.m.