Although he doesn’t consider himself a dancer, Lee Israel said he’s been involved with Sedona Dance Academy for about five years because his wife and kids were interested.

He and his whole family are involved in this year’s annual performance of “The Nutcracker,” which takes place on Saturday, Dec. 20, from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Sedona Performing Arts Center.

“Three years ago, Jessica [Phillips, SDA artistic director], asked me to play Drosslemeyer,” he said. “Which was a surprise, and I jumped at the chance.”

He’s been improving his role ever since.

The dancers, who are mostly between the ages of 4 to 17, come in two to five times a week to practice depending on how many dances they’re in.

“You have to be like a performer and actor, and you have to be listening to the music,” Phillips said. “You have to memorize choreography. You have to be aware of your spacing and group dances … it hits so many skills at once that I just see it really improving my kiddos’ cognitive function.”

Phillips said about 120 kids are involved this year, around 30 of whom are new to the performance.

This is the second year SDA has collaborated with the Sedona Dance Project and Sedona Community Youth Orchestra.

“I performed with an orchestra always, as a professional, and I just want my kids to get to feel that when live music and dance come together,” Phillips said. “It’s really magical. So that I’m really excited about.”

In addition to those two groups, Israel will be joining on piano. He said he’s been playing since he was a teenager.

“I’m by no means a professional,” he said, “but an enthusiastic amateur.”

The atmosphere around the show’s actors and dancers is excitement.

Kaiya Loupais portrays the protagonist, Clara Stahlbaum. She said she’s been working hard and is ready to showcase her effort, but is trying to remember to stay in the moment and enjoy it all.

“My greatest challenge … would have to be staying in character of Clara and remembering to implement each of the little tips and corrections I’ve learned along the way,” she said.

While rehearsals have been going on, Phillips said she is proud of everyone’s progress getting ready for the performance. She said the size of the production growing has really allowed them to expand the scope of the production, purchase backdrops and other parts of scenes to bring things together.

“Sets and backdrops are very costly but as we grow, the school will be able to afford such upgrades to the production,” Phillips said.

She said the production gets better every year, and attributes much of the improvement to the growth of the studio.

“What’s really helped expand the school is the amazing teachers like Miss Danielle [Johnson] and Miss Jenna [Brown],” she said. “Teachers that specify in different techniques and skills, there’s only one of me, and I specialize in ballet, but our curriculum really grew when we got multiple skilled teachers and could offer different dance techniques.”

The school offers six different types of techniques and styles of movement, including ballet, tap, jazz, modern, hip hop and tumbling. Because of the range of expertise in the studio and the complexity of a dance show like “The Nutcracker,” Phillips said it works hand in hand to help the students grow as artists.’

“Sticking with a positive attitude in rehearsals can be tough sometimes due to the pressure of doing your absolute best,” said Phoebe Jones, who plays Dewdrop. “This pressure leads me to perform worse than what I expected in class, and to start doubting myself.”

But, Jones said if she tells herself she can do it, everything falls into place.

The Rat Queen is played by Lilyana Barret, who has had a fun time encapsulating her character.

“Really embodying the rat-ness of my character without losing all of my humanness,” she said about challenges. “I love theatre with all of my heart. I also really love acting as the villain. So to be able to be on stage as the villain is like a dream come true.”

She said her goal is to never stop working hard and make sure she succeeds through continuous practice.

Tickets for the show are $20 or $25 depending on seat location and are available at sedonadanceacademy.org.