In the mid-century American classic play “The Miracle Worker,” by William Gibson, the child Helen Keller punches, kicks, flings food, throws whatever’s in her clutches, pulls hair, screams, wails, and otherwise throws physical tantrums like a feral animal. She’s a brilliant yet obstinate, wildly spoiled child in her upper-class, post Civil War Alabama home in which all her kin are cousin to General Robert E. Lee. From a baby with enormous vitality to a deaf-mute child, she is pitied for her disabilities caused by illness, and since none of the finest quacks money could buy helped, her family nearly ruins her for any kind of productive life.

The Nutcracker, like so many holiday traditions, is an experience rich with nostalgia. For many, the classical ballet is the only ballet they’ve ever seen; for others, it’s an annual tradition that began in childhood; for others, the music, characters and movement summon memories of the times when they’ve played or danced it themselves.

Farmers Alley Theatre couldn’t possibly have known when they selected their season that December 2017 would offer the perfect cultural moment for a light-hearted jukebox musical in which three iconic female archetypes beaten down by the misbehaving men in their lives risk everything to strike out on their own — only to find beautiful harmonies and support in each other.

Last month, the Irving S. Gilmore International Keyboard Festival named Pierre van der Westhuizen as its next director. The South African pianist and arts administrator will take the helm this January following the retirement of Daniel Gustin, the current director of 18 years. Widely credited with boosting the visibility of the prestigious Cleveland International Piano Competition, van der Westhuizen brings impressive administrative chops to The Gilmore — as well as the perspective of a renowned musician and passionate educator.