To kick off the holiday season, Stead Family Children’s Hospital patients, families, and faculty gathered to celebrate a tree lighting on Thursday. The event marks the beginning of the holiday season in Iowa City.

To mark the occasion, pre-professional dancers from the Nolte Dance Academy in Coralville performed excerpts of the traditional Nutcracker Ballet, illuminated by the light of 11 Christmas trees in the hospital, which were lit by Nacho, the hospital Golden Retriever with the press of his nose.

Leslie Nolte, director of Nolte Dance Academy, and Jere Hunt, a dance instructor, watched the dancers with pride as they performed for staff, patients, and families at the hospital. This is the fifth year that the academy has been featured at Stead Family Children’s Hospital.

“The kids having an opportunity to get out into the community that isn’t a stage is always really lovely, and it’s so special getting to share the Nutcracker with people that might not be able to come to other performances,” Nolte said.

Thirteen dancers of different ages and castings performed solos, duets, and trios to Tchaikovsky’s holiday classic. The dancers look forward to the performance all year, with training beginning in September. Many of the dancers have been participating in the Nutcracker for anywhere between four and eight years.

“They just feel very privileged that they get to come here and share their art, what they love so dearly, with the community at the hospital,” Nolte said.

Multiple dancers shared their experience at the Nutcracker, noting the importance of the performance at the hospital. Sage Sulentic, who has been performing in the Nutcracker for eight years, holds many positions in the performance, including the coveted Dewdrop role in the Waltz of the Flowers.

“I think it’s really cool to get to perform something here, to show the kids something they might have never seen before, and show them how much we love performing,” Sulentic said.

Peyton Eustice, who is featured as Clara in the ballet, has been performing in the Nutcracker for four years. Clara, the heroine of the story, receives the Nutcracker doll at her parent’s annual holiday party, which begins the dreamy adventure.

“I think bringing joy to the patients is really special, too,” Eustice said. “It’s such a magical tradition for us. Sharing that with them is so cool.”

Claire Thomas, who is performing for her tenth year in the Nutcracker, also dances many roles in the Nutcracker, including a soldier, archangel, and a Chinese dancer.

“I just love the Nutcracker, and I love for other people to share the magic,” Thomas said. “I think it’s really special to show my life and to dance with others.”

RELATED: ‘Doctors in Concert’ celebrates medicine, music for UI Stead Family Children’s Hospital

In addition to the dancers at the Nolte Dance Academy, the tree-lighting ceremony is important to other people in the community, including staff members of the Stead Family Children’s Hospital. Racheal Niensteadt, a child life specialist at the hospital, feels the holiday spirit every year at this event.

“This event is so special,” Niensteadt said. “It helps to bring normalization to our patients and families, and it really kicks off our holiday season here at the children’s hospital. It’s a really fun event for our patients and families, but our staff get to be a big part of it as well in deciding the themes of the trees.”

The Child Life team at the Stead Family Children’s Hospital has creative ideas for the trees, each of them presenting a different theme, ranging from the popular musical “Wicked” to dinosaurs to tree toppers of the Nacho.

“It has a big impact on our patients and families,” Niedsteadt said. “It shows that we truly care about them in the hospital, and it gives them something to look forward to. It’s a little escape for them.”

Lily Steimel, a young girl receiving care at the Stead Family Children’s Hospital, said she enjoyed the event immensely.

“My favorite part of this was getting to see the trees and dancers,” she said. “I’m really looking forward to Christmas and getting to see my family. But I’m still working on my Christmas list.”