No wonder "Nutcracker" remains an enduring holiday tradition.

Ballet Hawaii's "Nutcracker," which opened Friday night at Blaisdell Concert Hall, presented the island's most elaborate version, featuring a full orchestra, stunning sets, charming costumes and an array of dancers, from beginning preschoolers to guest professionals.

Working within traditional parameters, Peter Dean Beck designed innovative, delightful sets. The scene-setting on scrim, at the beginning, and the "Snow Forest" were enchanting, but when the curtain opened to reveal his second-act "Kingdom of the Sweets," the audience gasped and applauded in appreciation.

the fog-covered stage. Particularly clever was the way Beck used the large boxes as entrances for various dancers, echoing Drosselmeyer's presentation of his mechanical dolls in the first act.

Lighting by Sandy Sandlin and costumes by Anne Namba filled in the fantasy, adding nuances and creating worlds-within-worlds.

But it was the dancers who brought those worlds alive.

Guest Joaquin De Luz danced a wonderful Cavalier and dominated the stage with impressive solos. Tall, handsome, charming, and an excellent dancer, he partnered his almost-equally tall Sugar Plum Fairy with grace, all the while exuding a winsome presence.

De Luz and his partner, Megan Fairchild, lacked the spark of longtime partners, but nonetheless made an extraordinarily handsome couple. Because Fairchild's solos were less challenging than De Luz's, however, their alternating solos seemed less like vying and more like turn-taking. Fairchild danced beautifully throughout, and her form was excellent; she was undoubtedly an inspiration to the company's many aspiring young ballerinas.

"Nutcracker" provides numerous roles for young dancers, including boys and girls of all ages, which accounts for part of its enduring charm. The young couple, Tiffany Kondo (Marie) and Riley Lynch (Nephew/Prince), were lovely, and the littlest of little ones were of course adorable. It almost doesn't matter what they do because they're such fun to watch, but every one of them deserves an extra sugarplum for the wonderful performance they gave Friday night.

More than most ballets, "Nutcracker" also offers a wide variety of special roles/dances. For newcomers in the audience, the variety keeps it interesting; for veterans, each role/dance is an opportunity to see what that particular dancer does with it.

Of note Friday night were Sandra Brown as Dew Drop, Daphne Hargrove and Roman Zhurbin as the Arabian couple, Michael Vernon as Herr Drosselmeyer, Benjamin Dorado as Nutcracker and Chinese dancer, and Dr. Phil McNamee as a comic Grandfather. There are, of course, many others, and part of the fun in watching "Nutcracker" is picking favorites.

Choreography by Tom Pazik, Michael Vernon, and Diane Letoto interpreted the music effectively on both large and detailed levels. The use of ribbons in the Chinese dance was innovative and visually effective. Staging by Pamela Taylor-Tongg flowed smoothly and created several beautiful tableaux, such as the nicely balanced one ending Act 1.

Sustaining it all was the Honolulu Symphony, conducted by Stuart Chafetz. Tchaikovsky composed an incomparable ballet score with distinctive, memorable scenes that stand on their own in concert halls but that never overshadow the dancing on stage.

The Symphony was mixed Friday night, with odd moments of imbalances among the musicians and incongruities between music and dancing, offset by beautiful solos, such as those by clarinetist James Moffitt, oboist Scott Janusch, harpist Constance Uejio, and English horn Jason Sudduth.