At Christmas time a beautiful ballerina doll who longs to dance is discovered in a toy store and coveted by two little girls: Ilyana, who wants to love her, and Mary Jane, who doesn't want Ilyana to get her.
Brenda tells her cousin Tiffany that she has a pair of ballet shoes autographed by the famous ballerina, Camilla Freeman, even though she doesn't and now she'll need the help of her Sugar Plum Sisters to get out of the mess!.
Triplets Jessica, JoAnn, and Jerzey and their friends in ballet class try to keep the building that houses The Nutcracker School from being torn down, while also trying to rescue a stray kitten.
Alex's ballet-crazy Mom enrolls her at the Nutcracker Ballet School and even though Alex is a terrible dancer, she is chosen for the starring role in the school recital.
Perfectionistic Jerzey desperately wants to be a good ballet dancer like her sisters, but her efforts to learn are repeatedly thwarted, until she finds help in an unexpected place.
When Epatha tries to spice up the choreography of the new ballet in Harlem, the rest of the Sugar Plum Ballerinas encourage her to keep her toes in line, in chapter-book format.
