Members of the Diablo Ballet Company will visit with young readers and take photos at the Alameda Free Library at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 1.

The audience will also be treated to part of a retelling of “The Nutcracker.”

Space is limited, so interested parents and kids should plan to be there at 2:45 p.m., according to members of the Alameda Free Library Foundation and Live at the Library, which organized the event.

For questions, call 510-464-1099 or e-mail info@libraryfoundation.org.

For those hoping to see a complete showing of “The Nutcracker” without leaving the Island, the Alameda Civic Ballet will perform its annual production at 2 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 15-16, at the Kofman Theater, 2200 Central Ave.

Tickets are available online, and start at $18.

The story of “The Nutcracker” transports audience members on a magical journey with Clara and the Nutcracker Prince, according to the Alameda Civic Ballet. The journey includes a heroic battle against the Mouse King, travel through the Land of the Snowflakes and a visit to the Kingdom of the Sweets, home of the Sugar Plum Fairy and the Land of Enchantment.

The Alameda Civic Ballet’s eighth-annual production is choreographed by artistic director Abra Rudisill and is performed with the classic Tchaikovsky musical score.