So you got all your shopping done—but you forgot to have any fun this holiday season. And now the relatives are coming. Fear not, for the good news is that there are plenty of holiday shows between now and New Year’s to get your spirit on.
Even if you procrastinate past Christmas, Scrooge-like, you can see The Christmas Carol—right up to December 31—at the Guthrie Theater. This year, in time for the new decade, the Guthrie has rolled out a new, tighter production, shedding some excesses while maintaining all the most popular scenes.
Penumbra Theatre’s beloved Black Nativity: A Season for Change also overshoots the holidays, running until December 27. And it, too, has made changes to its signature show of gospel song and dance, including new songs and scenes.
In what’s becoming a real tradition over at the Dakota Jazz Club and Restaurant, the Bad Plus are holding court once again from December 25 to 27, a great choice for dining out if you really didn’t feel like eating Christmas ham leftovers all weekend.
For dance fans, Ballet of the Dolls’ cheeky Nutcracker: Not So Suite shows run through December 27 at the Ritz Theater.
And the Brave New Workshop, never ones to let the season pass unscathed, have cobbled new topical sketches together with old holiday favorites for Brett Favre’s Christmas Spectacular: The Immaculate Interception, which you can catch, no pun intended, all the way through January 30. The promotional image alone, of Favre being tackled by Santa Claus, is worth the price of admission. Or so sayeth this Packers fan.
Other great shows, ending Wednesday, include the atmospheric S. Gunter Klaus and the Story Before—about Santa’s origins—at the Southern Theater. And Open Eye Figure Theatre’s annual Holiday Pageant, featuring the company’s exquisite puppets.
