Inside 'The Nutcracker': Two Toronto Star reporters join the National Ballet’s cannon doll tradition

The National Ballet of Canada’s beloved annual holiday production of “The Nutcracker,” now celebrating its 30th anniversary, has invited hundreds of guests over the years to play its cannon dolls — from NBA stars and local Toronto newscasters to Canadian musicians and TV actors. 

It’s a tradition that stretches back more than six decades that began with company founder Celia Franca. In the National Ballet’s previous production of “The Nutcracker,” a pair of local celebrities at each performance would act as stretcher bearers, carrying a wounded gingerbread cookie off the stage.