With such a plethora of holiday events in our region, it’s quite a task to choose the best ones for your already hectic schedule! Luckily, this is the season of giving and we’re feeling particularly generous. Take a peek under your cyber Christmas tree. Our gift to you? A carefully curated directory of our favorite things to do this December in Washington, DC, Maryland, and Virginia. Now hurry off and have fun — this special time comes but once a year.
Happy holidays from WETA Around Town!
SPARKLES FROM THE STAGE
Theatre’s always magical, but something about the holidays makes the stage shine a little brighter after Thanksgiving. We covered many here in our recent Holiday Theatre Roundup:
Here are a few more performances you shouldn’t tuck away in your stocking; see one now!
Holiday Guys featuring Marc Kudisch and Jeffry Denman
December 11-16; Cost: Tickets starting at $41
Signature Theatre – Arlington, VA
It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play
December 6-30, Thursday-Sunday; Cost: $25.50 for adults; $21.50 for seniors/students
Maryland Ensemble Theatre – Frederick, MD
My So-Called Jewish Life: Holiday Time Storytelling
December 15, 8pm; Cost: $17 in advance $20 at the door
Sixth & I Historic Synagogue – Washington, DC
Seasonal Disorder by Washington Improv Theater
December 6-22, 8 & 10pm; Cost: $10 in advance, $15 at the door
Source – Washington, DC
Rep Stage presents David Sedaris’ Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk
December 20 – 23; Cost: $15
The Horowitz Visual and Performing Arts Center - Columbia, MD
‘Tis the Season: A concert by the American Youth String Ensemble
December 7, 7pm; Cost: $15 for adults, $10 for seniors/students
Vienna Presbyterian Church – Vienna, VA
Yes, Virginia: The Musical produced by Oxon Hill Middle School
December 6 & 7, 6:30pm; Cost $5
Oxon Hill Middle School – Fort Washington, MD
TWIRLING LIKE A SUGAR PLUM FAIRY
Grace and elegance—don’t we all wish we had more of that, especially as the year comes to a hectic close? Maybe a dancer’s poise will rub off on us. There’s only one way to find out and that means going to a holiday dance performance!
Kwanzaa Celebration with Dance Place
December 14 & 15, 8pm; Cost: $22 general admission
Dance Place – Washington, DC
Step Afrika! Magical, Musical Holiday Step Show
December 12-23; Cost: $35 for adults, $20 for seniors/students
Atlas Performing Arts Center – Washington, DC
The Nutcracker by Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Baltimore School of the Arts, Maryland Institute College of Art & Modell Lyric
December 21 & 22, 2 & 7:30pm; Cost: Starting at $28
Modell Lyric – Baltimore, MD
MUSICAL MERRIMENT
With carols and orchestral celebrations, ‘tis the season of music! We’ve narrowed down the list of holiday concerts galore. And, yes, there’s something about the holidays that makes us feel lyrical.
Florence: Christmas Music of the Trecento
December 14 – 23, Cost: $50
Folger Shakespeare Library – Washington, DC
Holiday Pops Celebration with BSO SuperPops
December 12 – December 16; Cost: Tickets start at $17
The Music Center at Strathmore – N. Bethesda, MD
and Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall – Baltimore, MD
Joy of Christmas Concert by the Cathedral Choral Society
December 15 & 16; Cost: $25
Washington National Cathedral – Washington, DC
Mount Vernon Flutes Holiday Music
December 9, 2pm; Cost: Free
Athenaeum - Alexandria, VA
National Chamber Ensemble Annual Holiday Concert
December 16, 4:30pm; Cost: $28 for adults, $15 for students
Rosslyn Spectrum Theatre at Artisphere – Arlington, VA
Take 5! A Cool Yule with the Brad Linde Quartet plus Brass
December 20, 5-7pm; Cost: Free
Smithsonian American Art Museum – Washington, DC
Washington Symphonic Brass presents Holiday Concert
December 18, 7:30pm; Cost: Tickets between $28-48
The Music Center at Strathmore – Bethesda, Maryland
World Holiday Celebrations by Children’s Chorus of Washington
December 15 & 16, 4pm; Cost: $25 for adults, $10 for children
National City Christian Church – Washington, DC
STIRRING SIGHTS
Glitter, lights, and numerous other decorations put the winter holidays in the running for the most beautiful time of year. Honor the spirit of the season (and the visual arts) by strolling out to one of these shows:
Holiday Ornament Emporium
December 7 – 23; Cost: Free with admission
Montpelier Mansion - Laurel, MD
ICE!™ Featuring Dreamworks’ Shrek the Halls
Through January 6; Cost: Starting at $22.99, discount for Military, Seniors and Kids
The Gaylord Hotel – National Harbor, MD
Joys of the Season All-media Exhibition
Through January 20; Cost: Free
Torpedo Factory Art Center – Alexandria, VA
STRICTLY G-RATED
The holidays can be fun for the whole family. Here are a few events that are sure to delight the young and young at heart.
Baktun 13: A Guatemalan Cultural Festival
December 15 & 16, 10am-5pm; Cost: Free
National Museum of the American Indian – Washington, DC
Drumming with Dishes – The Holiday Edition
December 11-16; Cost: $8
Atlas Performing Arts Center – Washington, DC
Holiday Films at AFI Silver: It’s a Wonderful Life, The Muppet Christmas Carol, A Christmas Story, The Nutcracker, Miracle on 34th Street, Holiday Affair, etc.
Starting December 7; $11.50 for general admission, $7 per child
AFI Silver Theatre & Cultural Center – Silver Spring, MD
Israeli-style Family Chanukah Celebration
December 8, 6:30-8:30pm; Cost: $7 per person, $20 max. per family
JCC of Greater Washington - Rockville, MD
Kwanzaa: A Musical Celebration
December 28, 10am; Cost: Free
Anacostia Community Museum – Washington, DC
Kwanzaa Celebration: And a Child Shall Lead Them
December 29, 12-4pm; Cost: $5
Reginald F. Lewis Museum – Baltimore, MD
Oh Tannenbaum! Christmas Festival
December 8-9; Cost: Free
Goethe-Institut – Washington, DC
And for more holiday cheer around Washington, watch our WETA Guide to Christmas online or on air!
Tuesday, December 18 at 5:00pm
Wednesday, December 19 at 8:00pm
Thursday, December 20 at 2:00pm
Sunday, December 23 at 1:30pm
Monday, December 24 at 8:30am
close to home. Attend the Fiesta de las Or-Kid-eas Family Festival for a variety of orchid related activities, such as orchid face painting, orchid tattooing, orchid mosaic-making, and plant discussions. Want to learn how to pot an orchid? Orchid experts will also be giving patrons an orchid-potting demonstration and will even allow them to take an orchid home with them.
To make this concert even more interesting, the Choral Society will perform the piece in the original Old Church Slavonic, which is a Slavonic language dating back to 9th century Byzantine missionaries. With a talented chorus and historic location, this concert will take you back in time and in peace.
