A Massachusetts elementary school canceled — and then reversed its decision to cancel — a field trip for students to view the classic ballet, The Nutcracker, because the production features a Christmas tree. The cancellation occurred after the school's PTA became concerned that students from non-Christian backgrounds would take offense at the ballet's marginally religious content, which far more prominently features soldiers made of gingerbread and a Mouse King.
Critics have noted that, by the PTA's logic before the reversal, students also would be unable to view many famous works of Renaissance art, which frequently include far more explicitly religious themes and characters.
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