Check out these Fun Events Happening this Week

December 3

Tonight, Columbia hosts two major holiday-themed events: A Starry Night in Five Points and Mingle & Jingle on Main Street. A Starry Night runs from 4 to 8 p.m. and features complimentary horse carriage rides and hot chocolate; a holiday-themed photo booth; a DJ; deals at participating Five Points businesses; a visit from Santa, who will be hanging out at the Hootie monument (singing “Hold My Hand,” perhaps?), and much more. Visit fivepointscolumbia.com for more info. Meanwhile, Main Street gets into the holiday action from 6 to 10 p.m. with festivities including a River Rat tap takeover at The Whig, a sixth anniversary art show at Anastasia & Friends Gallery (in the Free Times lobby), a sale at the Columbia Museum of Art shop, live music at various spots — including Uptown on Main, the Marriott and Mast General — and more. Visit facebook.com/firstthursdayonmain for more info. Admission to both A Starry Night and Mingle & Jingle on Main is free.

December 4 

If you’re a Scrooge, you might as well just stop reading right now, because almost everything happening in Columbia these days is Christmas-related. (If you’re non-Christian or non-religious, just hang in there: It will all be over soon.) Today, you’ve got four— count ‘em, four — Christmas events to compete for your attention.

  • The Columbia Classical Ballet kicks off its three-day run of Nutcracker performances with a 7:30 p.m. show at the Koger Center. This marks the company’s first major production since its studios were flooded in October. Additional performances are on Saturday at 3 and 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m. Tickets range from $5 to $32; visit columbiaclassicalballet.com to order.
  • Today marks the start of the Lexington Snowball Festival, which begins from 6 to 8 p.m. with a carnival and concert in Lexington Square Park and culminates Sunday at 3:30 p.m. with a parade; see lexsc.com for more info.
  • Also today: On Stage Productions in West Columbia presents the original show A Twisted Carol: A Jukebox Musical, which brings Scrooge and other Dickens characters together with some newly created ones; show time is 7:30 p.m. and tickets are $19. Visit onstagesc.com for more info.
  • Last but not least: Columbia Children’s Theatre presents Jingle Arrgh The Way, which is — you guessed it — a pirate-themed Christmas show. This 7 p.m. show is a special holiday-themed party; tickets are $20 for adults and $15 for kids, available at columbiasc.citymomsblog.com. The show runs through Dec. 13, and tickets are $10; visit columbiachildrenstheatre.com for more info.

December 5

  • “The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear.” How’s that Christmas spirit holding up? You’d better have some left in the tank, because today is the Carolina Carillon Parade, Columbia’s longest-running holiday parade. This year’s event, the 62nd, will roll down Gervais Street beginning at 9:45 a.m. with floats, marching bands and more, starting from the corner of Gervais and Bull streets and heading west. This year’s grand marshal is the national champion USC equestrian team. Visit carolinacarillon.com for more info.
  • It would be a stretch to say that the Saturnalia Festival at the S.C. State Museum has nothing to do with Christmas, because the Roman celebration of Saturnalia predated Christmas and was eventually absorbed by it as the Romans converted to Christianity. But, it has a lot less to do with Christmas than most other holiday events happening this week. So, if you’re looking to check it out, it’s running from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
  • Celebrate Krampusnacht in Columbia! Krampusmass 2015 celebrates that most excellent of Christmas folklore villains, Krampus — a demon who used to be really into baking naughty kids into pies until Saint Nicholas pulled a Bilbo-Baggins-what-has-it-got-in-its-pocketses type trick on him and got him to just hand out spankings and coal instead. (Seriously, Google it.) The Kraumpusnacht involves people dressing up like Krampus and reveling hard through town, whipping out spankings to the naughty. It’s Christmas for people who only like Halloween, basically. Columbia’s celebration is the longest-running traditional Krampuslauf in the country, so don’t miss out on your chance to be part of something truly weird and fun. Things kick off with a drink at The Whig first, then a meetup at the State House in front of the Christmas tree at 8 p.m. for pictures and such. Then it’s back to The Whig for drinks and carousing around the Vista, making the naughty atone.

December 6

For a 10th straight year, longtime Free Times music contributor Kevin Oliver has organized the Christmas at Red Bank concert, featuring a selection of local and regional musicians who will each tackle a pair of holiday tunes, performing them during an intimate evening at Red Bank United Methodist Church. The 6:30 p.m. event is free, but donations to Lexington Interfaith Community Services are strongly encouraged.

December 7

Since Georgia O’Keeffe: Her Carolina Story opened at the Columbia Museum of Art in October, a solid number of events have tackled the artist’s work and influence from a variety of different angles. A Night With Anita tackles a different aspect, with Meeghan Kane, a professor at Benedict College and the editor of the relatively new site Auntie Bellum (billed as “an honest, unapologetic voice for Southern women”), and Graham Duncan, a manuscript expert with the University of South Carolina, delving into the life of Anita Pollitzer, friend and informal agent to O’Keeffe. The 6 p.m. talk at the museum is free with membership or admission. Visit columbiamuseum.org for more.

December 8

  • Three Irish Tenors-Christmas from Dublin 3:00 PM and 8:00 PM. The popular trio’s performance will feature holiday favorites such as The Little Drummer Boy,” Adeste Fideles,” Silent Night,” Saviour’s Day” and O Holy Night, as well as Danny Boy.” On its sixth American tour, the group sings songs and arias that appeal to all generations. Tickets are $40 and seating is limited. To purchase a ticket or find out more information visit newberryoperahouse.com or call the Box Office at (803) 276-6264.
  • Back in October, a lot of events were cancelled or postponed because of the flood. One of those was a concert by the South Carolina Philharmonic, which was rescheduled for tonight. But the program has changed, to reflect the fact that the concert — dubbed A Concert for Columbia — is now dedicated to flood relief and first responders. What’s on the program? That would be the monumental and glorious Ninth Symphony by Beethoven. (If you think you don’t know it, you will when you hear the “Ode to Joy” finale.) Tickets range from $17 to $47, and the Koger Center performance starts at 7:30 p.m. Visit scphilharmonic.com for more info or kogercenterforthearts.com for tickets.

December 9

Given all the revitalization along Columbia’s Main Street, the question is no longer “What can you do on Main Street?” but “What can’t you do on Main Street?” One reliable amenity is the Columbia Museum of Art’s Chamber Music on Main series, which returns tonight with an ensemble including Phillip Bush on piano, Yehonatan Berick on violin, Nicholas Cords on viola and Edward Arron, the series’ renowned artistic director, on cello. The program includes works by Mozart, Mahler, John Musto and Fauré. Admission to the 7 p.m. concert costs $35; $28 for members; $5 for students. Head to columbiamuseum.org to find out more.

 

*Information courtesy of www.free-times.com