“In her 44 years, Barbie has appeared in more than 80 guises, from dentist to astronaut to rap star. One of the most popular dolls has been Ballet Barbie. So small wonder that two years ago, when the company decided Barbie was ready to make her video debut, the vehicle they chose was The Nutcracker, with Barbie playing Clara in an animated adaptation of the E. T. A. Hoffmann ballet classic. The video and DVD have sold 3.5 million copies.” Now, Barbie has been cast in Swan Lake, and the New York City Ballet has been enlisted to provide the very human movement behind the computer-generated dance sequences.