As Prop Builder for the 90-city tour of Nutcracker Magical Christmas Ballet, I was tasked with fabricating, repairing and repainting a wide array of objects. From painting clay puppets and vacuform mascot heads to reshaping swords and sourcing Christmas wreaths, this assignment was as fun as it was varied. However, my primary project was creating 44 custom gift boxes—22 for each show. I built the boxes out of 1/4 inch plywood, and with support from the Costume Department, chose and applied fabrics and ribbon onto each box. Finally, I applied a clear polyurethane spray to each box for added durability and attached gift toppers to each present.