There’s more than one nut to crack this year. New York City Ballet’s “Nutcracker,” a holiday tradition since 1954, has some first-class com petition, both from American Ballet Theatre and Mark Morris, whose skewed take, “The Hard Nut,” is back in New York for the first time in eight years. Which one’s right for you? Here’s our crackdown.

Your parents probably took you to see this one — and your kids will probably take their kids to it, too. George Balanchine’s version for New York City Ballet is magical, not just for the choreography, with its complex but delicate partnering of the Sugar Plum Fairy and her Cavalier, but the dancing, both by the pros and the unnaturally talented children at the School of American Ballet.

And then there are the special effects: a blizzard made of paper confetti, and the Christmas tree, which grows and grows until it’s 41 feet tall.

Sean Lavery, who once danced with Balanchine and now assists company director Peter Martins, recalls the Russian choreographer’s feeling about the ever-growing evergreen. “That’s the ballerina!” he exclaimed.

Through Jan. 2, David H. Koch Theater, Lincoln Center; tickets $40-225; 212-870-5570.

Morris’ version isn’t at all traditional: It’s a jaundiced, adult look at childhood set in the ‘burbs with a comic-book-inspired ’70s décor. Even so, Morris follows the lines of the original E.T.A. Hoffmann story, right down to its heroine’s name: She’s Marie, not Clara, as she is in Balanchine’s version.

Here, Drosselmeier is a friend of the family who comes bearing gifts: a Barbie doll, a robot and a nutcracker. Marie ends up falling for his nephew.

That’s just fine with Lauren Grant, who dances the role opposite her husband, David Leventhal.

“We have to do a lot of kissing,” she says. “It’s much more comfortable kissing your husband than kissing your colleague!”

“The Hard Nut” also has a snow scene — a Hollywood production number with silvery dancers tossing fistfuls of snow, which inevitably mixes with other leftovers from the stage.

“Hair, jewelry, toenails, dust bunnies . . . ,” says Grant. “Everyone learns to breathe with their mouths closed.”

Dec. 10-19 at BAM, 30 Lafayette Ave; $25 to $70, 718-636-4100.

Just as “The Hard Nut” leaves BAM, American Ballet Theatre moves in with a $5 million production choreographed by Alexei Ratmansky, Bolshoi Ballet director turned artist-in-residence at ABT. It’s designed by Richard Hudson, whose set designs for “The Lion King” earned him a Tony.

Unlike the Morris version, this “Nut” is more traditional. “He didn’t want to do anything off the wall,” Hudson says of Ratmansky’s choreography. “He wanted it to be appealing to children.”

This “Nutcracker” starts not in the parlor, but in the kitchen. The mice get involved — shades of “Ratatouille” — but these mice aren’t sweet. They bite.

This Sugar Plum Fairy is a Mistress of Ceremonies, but her big dance number is taken by Clara and the Nutcracker Prince, as they imagine themselves grown-up and in love.

Ratmansky, recalling childhood tales about harsh Russian winters, wanted his snow to be dangerous. It starts out looking pretty, but kicks up into a frightening storm.

His fertile invention and Hudson’s vivid, jewel-box designs could make this version a new classic.

Dec. 22-Jan. 2 at BAM, $20 to $135; 718-636-4100.