The Maine State Ballet Orchestra has performed for Maine State Ballet productions since 1987. Conducted and directed by Karla Kelley, the orchestra is composed of over 40 musicians, all but a few of whom live in Maine. Many of these musicians also play for the Portland Symphony Orchestra and other prominent organizations. Kelley, of Massachusetts, is both a musician and a gifted conductor with a reputation for conducting ballet orchestras.

Two youth choral groups located in the Portland area have collaborated with the Maine State Ballet Orchestra in recent years to provide voices into the Nutcracker snow scene:  the Musica de Filia Girlchoir, directed by Jaye Churchill, and the Wescustago Youth Chorale, directed by Ann Dillon and Lise Dunn..