Nutcracker Berlin 2026: 17 dates, seats from €12
The Staatsballett’s new Nutcracker runs 17 dates at the Deutsche Oper, 27 Nov to 25 Jan, from €12. Dates, price levels, discounts. Checked October 2026.
This article contains affiliate links, marked *.
For Nutcracker Berlin tickets this winter, the main production is the Staatsballett’s new version at the Deutsche Oper: 17 dates from 27 November 2026 to 25 January 2027, with seats from €12 on two Sunday matinees.
But on 21 October, 10 of the 17 dates already showed only remaining tickets, and the price floor moves from €12 to €52 depending on the night. The table shows which nights are still open and what two seats cost at the bottom price.
Jump to: the 17 dates · why December is the wrong month · Going with someone
It is an evening most people would rather share: see Going with someone.
Nutcracker Berlin: all 17 dates and prices
Prices are the range the Staatsballett’s own page showed for each performance on 21 October 2026. “Remaining tickets” is the page’s own label (Restkarten). The ranges can change during the day: on 21 October the 29 November matinee’s floor dropped from €47 to €34 while we were checking. The last column is our sum: two seats at the bottom price, if two are left.
| Date | Time | Price on the ballet’s page | Status on 21 Oct | Cheapest pair |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fri 27 Nov (first night) | 19:30 | €52–€186 | Buy tickets Eventim* | €104 |
| Sun 29 Nov | 15:00 | €34–€110 | Remaining tickets Eventim* | €68 |
| Sun 29 Nov | 19:30 | €22–€110 | Remaining tickets Eventim* | €44 |
| Fri 4 Dec | 19:30 | €43–€146 | Remaining tickets Eventim* | €86 |
| Sun 6 Dec | 15:00 | €12–€110 | Remaining tickets Eventim* | €24 |
| Sun 6 Dec | 19:30 | €34–€110 | Remaining tickets Eventim* | €68 |
| Sat 12 Dec | 19:30 | €43–€146 | Remaining tickets Eventim* | €86 |
| Mon 14 Dec | 19:30 | €47–€110 | Remaining tickets Eventim* | €94 |
| Sat 19 Dec | 19:30 | €43–€146 | Remaining tickets Eventim* | €86 |
| Fri 25 Dec | 15:00 | €43–€146 | Remaining tickets Eventim* | €86 |
| Fri 25 Dec | 19:30 | €43–€146 | Buy tickets Eventim* | €86 |
| Tue 29 Dec | 19:30 | €34–€110 | Remaining tickets Eventim* | €68 |
| Sat 16 Jan | 19:30 | €27–€146 | Buy tickets Eventim* | €54 |
| Sun 17 Jan | 18:00 | €22–€110 | Buy tickets Eventim* | €44 |
| Sun 24 Jan | 15:00 | €12–€110 | Buy tickets Eventim* | €24 |
| Sun 24 Jan | 19:30 | €15–€110 | Buy tickets Eventim* | €30 |
| Mon 25 Jan | 19:30 | €15–€110 | Buy tickets Eventim* | €30 |
Links marked * are affiliate links: if you book through them, MITRA earns a small commission. The price is the same for you. Eventim adds its booking fee to the ballet’s own prices shown above.
December is nearly gone, January is the cheap month
Twelve of the 17 performances fall before New Year. On 21 October, only two of those twelve still showed the normal “buy tickets” button: the first night on 27 November and the evening show on Christmas Day. The other ten were down to remaining tickets.
All five January dates were still on normal sale, and their bottom prices are the lowest of the run: €12 to €27. The top price tells you which nights cost more. Ten dates top out at €110, six (4, 12 and 19 December, both shows on Christmas Day, and 16 January) top out at €146, and the first night tops out at €186.
For a Christmas outing, book now and accept the price. Otherwise January is cheaper and easier.
For more on the season, see our Berlin events in December 2026 and Berlin events in November 2026.
What this Nutcracker is
This is a new Berlin staging by Christian Spuck, who first made his Nutcracker in Zurich in 2017 and says on the ballet’s page that he chose not to revive that version but to choreograph it anew for the Berlin company. It goes back to E.T.A. Hoffmann’s 1816 novella rather than only the sweet Christmas version most people know, and the Staatsballett recommends it from age 6.
The music is played live by the Orchestra of the Deutsche Oper Berlin, with the Deutsche Oper’s children’s choir. The evening lasts 2 hours 15 minutes including one interval, and there is a free introduction to the piece 45 minutes before every performance.
Which date we would book
Of every Nutcracker Berlin date this winter, we would book Sunday 24 January at 15:00. It was on normal sale on 21 October, the bottom price was €12, and an afternoon show leaves the evening free for dinner. Our second choice is Sunday 17 January at 18:00, from €22.
We would skip the first night unless being there first matters to you. Its floor is €52, more than four times the cheapest matinee, for the same production.
Going with someone
Two hours fifteen with one interval is a good shape for two people who do not know each other well yet: you sit side by side in the dark for the first half, then you have the interval to say what you thought. The introduction 45 minutes before is an easy reason to meet early, and it gives you both something to talk about before the music starts.
On a remaining-tickets night, check in the seat map that your two seats are actually next to each other before you pay. If the cheap seats are scattered, a January date is the simpler fix. Going on your own instead? Our guide to things to do alone in Berlin has more evenings that work solo.
If you would like company for one of these dates, post it on MITRA: put the performance, the time and where you will meet, and approve each person who asks to join. One person or a small group, your call. Free, no card. Get MITRA on Google Play · Download on the App Store
Cheaper ways in
The Staatsballett publishes several discounts on its ticket page. Which one fits depends on your age and how often you go.
- 50% off: school pupils, students and trainees under 30, people in voluntary service (FSJ, BFD, FWD) and people receiving unemployment benefit I or II, subject to availability, from four weeks before the performance. Under-18s get it from the start of sales.
- Family performances: the Staatsballett marks the 15:00 shows on 6 December and 24 January as family performances, where under-18s pay €10 on any seat.
- €15 last minute: 30 minutes before the curtain, remaining tickets go to the same eligible groups for €15.
- ClassicCard (under 30): €28 a year; then ballet tickets cost €18 in advance or €13 from two hours before the show, booked in the app. For each ClassicCard ticket you can add one ticket for a companion under 30 at the ClassicCard price plus €5; they need the app and an ID check (prices from classiccard.de).
- TanzTicket: €35 (€20 reduced) for 20% off every Staatsballett performance in the season, including first nights, with one discounted ticket per performance and no €2 online service fee.
Our maths on the TanzTicket: it is personal and gives one discounted ticket per performance, so if you go as two, each of you needs your own. 20% only covers €35 once you spend €175 on your own tickets in a season. One €43 seat saves you €8.60; even a €186 first-night top seat saves €37.20, only just more than the card costs. It pays if you plan several Staatsballett nights this season, not for one Nutcracker.
Getting there
The Deutsche Oper is at Bismarckstraße 35 in Charlottenburg. The U2 stops at Deutsche Oper station right outside. Bismarckstraße station on the U7 is close and has lifts to street level, and buses 101 and 109 stop nearby. The house car park entrance is at Zillestraße 51, with no guaranteed space.
The Deutsche Oper box office is open Friday and Saturday from noon to 7pm and closed on public holidays, and the evening box office opens one hour before each performance.
Other Nutcrackers in Berlin this winter
- Babylon (Mitte), 18 to 20 December 2026: the Berlin Ballet Company’s Nutcracker mixes a film made for the show with live dancers in the cinema. It runs 80 minutes with no interval, and Babylon calls it a world premiere. Babylon’s page lists the three dates but no price.
- Admiralspalast, 30 and 31 October 2026: the Paris Ballet Theater’s classic version, 2 hours 10 minutes including an interval. That is only days away.
- Admiralspalast, December 2026: two productions with live orchestra: the International Festival Ballet on Tuesday 8 December (19:00) and the Imperial Ballet on Saturday 12 December (15:00 and 19:30).
If you want the longest run, a new production and the Deutsche Oper’s own orchestra, the Staatsballett is the one. If you want something short and unusual, Babylon is the alternative.
Tickets
Buy from the Staatsballett itself: online through the Staatsballett performance page, by phone on +49 30 20 60 92 630 (Monday to Friday 11am to 5pm, weekends and holidays noon to 3pm), or at the opera box offices. The Staatsoper, Deutsche Oper and Komische Oper box offices sell them too. All 17 dates are also on Eventim*, which adds booking fees: its cheapest ticket was €33.12 when we checked on 21 October 2026, so the Staatsballett’s own shop is the cheaper way in.
The other productions: Admiralspalast on 30 October* and 31 October*, the International Festival Ballet on 8 December* and the Imperial Ballet on 12 December*, all on Eventim. Babylon sells its December dates on its own programme page.
Links marked * are affiliate links: if you book through them, MITRA earns a small commission. The price is the same for you.
Who it is not for
Children under 6, by the Staatsballett’s own recommendation. Anyone who wants the exact sugar-plum version from childhood: this one follows Hoffmann’s darker story more closely. And anyone set on a cheap December seat: on 21 October the €12 December matinee was already down to remaining tickets.
FAQ
How much are Nutcracker tickets in Berlin?
At the Staatsballett’s production at the Deutsche Oper, the prices on 21 October 2026 ranged from €12 to €186, depending on the date. The €12 floor was on the 15:00 shows on 6 December and 24 January; the first night on 27 November started at €52.
When is The Nutcracker in Berlin in 2026?
The Staatsballett plays it 17 times at the Deutsche Oper, from 27 November 2026 to 25 January 2027. Babylon has a separate film-and-ballet version from 18 to 20 December 2026.
How long is The Nutcracker at the Deutsche Oper?
2 hours 15 minutes including one interval. A free introduction starts 45 minutes before every performance.
Are there student discounts for the Nutcracker in Berlin?
Yes. Students and trainees under 30 get 50% off from four weeks before the performance, subject to availability, and remaining tickets go to the same groups for €15 30 minutes before the curtain. Under-30s with a ClassicCard pay €18 in advance or €13 from two hours before.
Is the Staatsballett Nutcracker suitable for children?
The Staatsballett recommends it from age 6, and under-18s pay €10 on any seat at the family performances on 6 December and 24 January at 15:00. Babylon’s 80-minute version has no interval and says children of any age can come.
Booked two seats, or thinking about the 24 January matinee? Post the date on MITRA with the time and a meeting point, then approve who joins you. It works for one other person or a small group. Get MITRA on Google Play · Download on the App Store
Prefer a musical to ballet? Our musicals in Berlin comparison lists nine shows from November to March, with the cheapest two seats for each.
Prefer singing to dancing? Our guide to opera in Berlin this winter compares the Christmas operas at all three big houses, from €9 a seat.
Want Swan Lake or something modern instead? Our guide to ballet in Berlin this winter compares every company we found, from €10 a seat.
Want to keep reading?
- Berlin events in December 2026
- Christmas markets in Berlin
- Friedrichstadt-Palast Berlin
- Concerts in Berlin 2027
- Things to do alone in Berlin
Every price and date checked on the organiser’s own site on 21 October 2026.
Sources
- https://www.staatsballett-berlin.de/spielplan/stueck-detail/stid/der-nussknacker/348.html
- https://www.staatsballett-berlin.de/en/ticketinfo
- https://www.staatsballett-berlin.de/en/classiccard.html
- https://www.classiccard.de/faq
- https://www.staatsballett-berlin.de/en/venues.html
- https://babylonberlin.eu/programm/live/live-event/10373-nutcracker-by-berlin-ballet-company
- https://www.admiralspalast.theater/veranstaltung/der-nussknacker-ballett-mit-orchester.html
