Free time is often in short supply as the holidays approach, but if you can make room in your busy schedule, give yourself a present and find the time to experience these delightful December treats – your future self will thank you for the memories.
Baroque Christmas
December 2, presented by Canterbury Choral Society, OKC Civic Center, 232.7464, canterburyokc.com
» One is 270 years old, the other nearly 300, and neither has lost its power to move listeners – due to popular demand, Handel’s Messiah and the Magnificat by Bach will serve as the dual anchors of Canterbury’s annual holiday tradition. Either piece has the ability to uplift and inspire; sung together by the full-throated Canterbury throng, they are nigh-overwhelming and form a performance that is tremendous in every way.
Boogie Woogie Christmas
November 29-December 2 and December 6-8, presented by UCO Music Theatre, UCO Jazz Lab, 974.3375, uco.edu/cfad
» Along with the sight of colored lights and smell of baked goods, Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without the sounds of favorite carols we’ve all known all our lives. Some of the finest tune-carriers to be found at the University of Central Oklahoma happily add a little zing to audiences’ jingle jubilation in a snazzy, jazzy annual concert.
Home for the Holidays
December 6-9, presented by American Spirit Dance Company, OCU Kirkpatrick Auditorium, 208.5227, okcu.edu/dance_amgt
» Christmas comes but once a year, so Oklahoma City University’s renowned American Spirit Dance Company holds nothing back in its avalanche of celebration. A reverent nativity pageant, a stunning kickline of Rockettes-style Santa’s Helpers and everything in between make up this joyous production of singing, dancing, mirth and merriment.
“The Nutcracker”
December 7-9 and 14-16, presented by OKC Ballet, OKC Civic Center, 843.9898, okcballet.com
» Exquisitely elegant in its own right and an integral component of the winter season – Tchaikovsky’s hauntingly beautiful recounting of a young girl’s wondrous journey comes to life through the skills of the OKC Ballet company as Clara, Herr Drosselmeyer, a valiant mechanical soldier and the fearsome Mouse King bring the magic of the world’s best-known ballet back to the Civic Center stage.
Lyric’s “A Christmas Carol”
November 30-December 29, presented by Lyric Theatre, Plaza Theater, 524.9312, lyrictheatreokc.com
» Under the expert guidance of director Michael Baron and featuring the returning talents of Jonathan Beck Reed, Tom Huston Orr and more, Lyric’s smash hit offers plenty of spectral special effects and the delightful trappings of the titular holiday, while never forgetting the beating heart of Dickens’ uplifting tale: the wondrous truth that we can all simply choose to become better people.
