As the turkey settles, we look ahead to the next few weeks to see what festive fare our local performing arts presenters will offer to salute the season. All tickets are available at centertix.net except as noted.
MUSIC
Eileen Ivers, Grammy-winning, nine-time All-Ireland Fiddle Champion, guest artist with everyone from the London Symphony Orchestra to Hall & Oats, will headline "An Nollaig: An Irish Christmas," at 7:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday in the Atwood Concert Hall. Presented by the Anchorage Concert Association, it will showcase traditional music and masterful dancing and Iver's imaginative renditions of favorite carols.
Tickets are $23-$38.
The Alaska Chamber Singers will perform "a diverse banquet of a cappella holiday fare, from chant to Renaissance to familiar carols to contemporary works" in their "Sounds of Christmas" concerts. When last we heard this carefully rehearsed group, they performed sonic magic at St. Andrews church, where the succulent acoustics defy explanation. But if the drive to Eagle River seems daunting, you can catch one of two presentations in Anchorage.
Friday at 5, 8 p.m., at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, 3900 Wisconsin Street, and 3 p.m. Sunnday at St. Andrew's Catholic Church, 16300 Domain Lane in Eagle River. (Cross Eagle River bridge on the Glenn Highway, take the exit ramp and turn left.) $30, $20 for seniors and military.
"Messiah" will be presented by the combined forces of the Anchorage Symphony Orchestra, the Anchorage Concert Chorus and the above-named Alaska Chamber Singers in two performances, at 8 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 12, and 4 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 13, in Atwood Concert Hall.
George Hanson, who directed the symphony back in the 1990s and has since gone on to a successful European concert and recording career, will return to lead his former forces in Handel's masterpiece, which is filled with tunes that have long been associated with Christmas, including "For unto us a child is born" and the "Hallelujah" chorus.
Tickets are $42-$20.
An A Cappella Christmas shows off the award-winning Alaska Sound Celebration women's ensemble as the special guests of the Midnight Sons a cappella chorus plus members of the West High School vocal department in a holiday concert that's all about voices -- and nothing but. This is what we used to call "barbershop," but you'll hear some doo-wop too especially when featured quartets take the stage. A great program for young and old, at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 18, in the Discovery Theatre.
Tickets are $15.
The Anchorage Concert Chorus (do singers ever rest in December?) will present its annual Family Holiday Pops concert at 4 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 20, also in Atwood Concert Hall. Joined by the Holiday Pops Orchestra, they'll sing a concert that mixes traditional hymns, a carol sing-along and lighthearted holiday fare. An evergreen favorite for young and old alike, it's guaranteed to put everyone in the holiday mood.
Tickets are $34-$21.
The Hiland Mountain Women's String Orchestra will present it's Sixth Annual Holiday Concert at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday. The inmates, most of whom are new to the instrumental music scene, will be joined by world-class cellist Aram Ksajikian. Admission is $25 as a donation, which means it's tax deductible, and can be purchased at Metro Music, on Benson across from Sears (and at centertix.net), or by e-mailing Pati Crofut at crofutp@aol.com.
Make a note of that e-mail, 'cause you need it to get in. The concert is held in the prison, and everyone in the audience must be pre-cleared by submitting a driver's license number before the concert. E-mail it to Pati now; the deadline is Friday. Yeah, it's an extra hoop -- but wait till you see the look on your friends' faces when you tell them you're going to jail next weekend.
The Derry Aires -- a group of fine female vocalists who have so far escaped the attention of the legal system -- have a new holiday release titled "Frozen Assets."
It includes beautiful arrangements of traditional favorites plus fresh and hilarious revamps of familiar classics, performed with infectious humor by the Derry Aires and guest artists.
To promote the CD, which grew out of their annual charitable Caroling for Spare Change Tour, they've been giving free performances, with at least two still coming up:
• Jitters in Eagle River at 4:30 p.m. Saturday.
• The Grand View Hotel in Wasilla at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 10.
If you miss those events, you can still get the disc at Celtic Treasures, Barnes & Noble, Pandemonium in Wasilla or on the Web at Amazon.com or CD Baby.
For more information contact Arctic Siren Productions, Inc. at 245-7311, artcsirn@acsalaska.net or at www.arcticsiren.com.
Music at the Anchorage Museum, 625 C St., is featured every Sunday through Christmas, featuring the following performers:
• Sunday, 1:30-4:30 p.m. Anchorage Concert Chorus, students with the Anchorage Keyboard Association and Little Blue Suitcase.
• Dec. 13, 1:30-4:30 p.m. New Hope Youth Choir, Alaska Children's Choir, Cantora Arctica and Arctic Wind Flute Choir. (By the way, admission is free on this day, courtesy of Wells Fargo.)
• Dec. 20, 2:15-4:30 p.m. Suzuki students of Karyn Grove, students of the Anchorage Keyboard Association and cellist Cheyenne Brown.
DANCE
The Nutcracker, featuring the Eugene Ballet Company and about 100 local dancers, is being presented by the Anchorage Concert Association in Atwood Concert Hall with two final performances at 1 and 5 p.m. today.
Tickets for this popular annual family event are $25-$45.
The Nutcracker, or rather excerpts therefrom, will be presented by dancers from Anchorage Ballet and The Edge School of Alberta, Canada.
This version will use original choreography by Alaska's own Courtland Weaver and include a special appearance by Maria Freethy, who recently appeared on "So You Think You Can Dance." (And, oh yes, she can!)
There will be one performance only, at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 12, in the Discovery Theatre. Tickets are $24-$28, available at anchorageballet.org.
THEATER
"Christmas Belles," is UAA Theatre's wacky seasonal show by several of America's leading comic playwrights, in which "a misadventure-filled Christmas Eve pageant spins out of control when squabbling siblings, a surly Santa, an Elvis impersonator and a family secret collide." It's the first Alaska staging of this play, which has been getting a lot of national attention.
The play is now running and will continue at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $7-$18.
"Miracle on 34th Street," a staged version of the classic movie, is also up and running now. The Anchorage Community Theatre has been transformed into the magical holiday world of New York City in the 1940s. This is a fabulous show for kids as well as adults.
Performance times are 7 p.m. Thursday-Saturday and 3 p.m. Sundays through Dec. 20. Tickets are $15, $13 for students and seniors. Call 868-4913 or buy online at www.actalaska.org. The theater is located at 1133 E. 70th. (Take the Old Seward Hwy. and turn east at the paint sign.)
"Babes in Toyland," the infectious Victor Herbert musical is being presented by Valley Performing Arts at the Machetanz Theatre in Wasilla.
Showtimes are 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 2 p.m. Sundays through Dec. 20. Tickets are $17-$15, and it's a good idea to get them before you go out. Go to www.valleyperform ingarts.org.
The Machetanz Theatre is located at 251 W. Swanson, which is off Tommy Moe Drive. Take the Parks Highway and turn right after you pass the light at Main Street/Knik Goose Bay Rd.
"Carol on my Wayward Son or Stuck in a Manger with You," is the definitely different holiday show presented by Denali Drama and the Denali Arts Council in Talkeetna. "Tantalizingly twisted," says the press release, which notes it's from the same irreverent crew that brought us "Home for the Hostilities... a Steaming Pile of Xmas Cheer." Adult content.
Showtime is 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday Dec. 18-26 (that's right... they're doing this ON Christmas night!) in the Sheldon Community Arts Hangar. Tickets are $15 for the general public, $12 if you're staying at a local B&B and bring your key. Call 1-907-733-7929 for advance ticket purchase with credit card.
"The SantaLand Diaries," another anti-holiday cult classic, is back by popular demand at Out North.
Juneau's multi-talented Ben Brown stars in the true and humorous account of David Sedaris' stint working as a Christmas elf at Macy's department store. Hey, Anchorage can be irreverent too. But don't worry about getting on Santa's naughty list without enough time to work it off...
"Diaries" will be presented AFTER Christmas day, at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 26 and 4 p.m. on Dec. 27.
Tickets are $15 at www.outnorth.org.
ETC.
Crafts Weekend and ReadAlaska Book Fair at the Anchorage Museum, 625 C St., winds up noon-5p.m. today. The only juried holiday crafts show in Anchorage features more than 50 Alaska artists selling jewelry, pottery, wearable art, glass, woodwork and more.
Crafts Weekend runs in conjunction with the 16th annual ReadAlaska Book Fair, featuring Alaska authors and illustrators singing their books. Admission is free today.
"Bark! The Musical" has nothing to do with Christmas, aside from one song about "It's a Wonderful Life," which has nothing to do with the Jimmy Stewart movie.
It's about dogs, as seen and sung by themselves. It runs at 7 p.m. Thursday-Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday from Dec. 4-22 at Cyrano's, 413 D. St. Tickets are $17-$15.
"Jason and the Argonauts," an alternative but epic retelling of the Greek Legend, is being presented to local school students and will have one public performance at 3 p.m. Saturday in the Discovery Theatre.
The Visible Fictions production, sponsored by Alaska Junior Theatre, is also devoid of any obvious reference to the holidays, but sounds like a lot of fun. Two actors fill out the roles of "countless characters."
Tickets, $16-$20.
Peter Mulvey, folk-pop singer, is not being billed as a holiday show, but I'll bet he croons a mean "Silent Night." He will sing at the Snowgoose Theater, 717 W. Third, at 7:30 p.m. Saturday and at Vagabond Blues in Palmer at 6 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $22-$20.
Find Mike Dunham online at adn.com/contact/mdunham or call 257-4332.
By MIKE DUNHAM
mdunham@adn.com