10 Holiday Shows and Art Exhibits in Downtown Greenville
It’s the season for the merry and the grumpy, as Greenville’s arts and entertainment scene will offer a slew of holiday show options, including three renditions of The Nutcracker, upstate talent featured in ballets and symphonies, as well as a few exhibitions and performances that exist outside the vacation realm to satisfy everyone.
Here are ten shows that should arrive around the holiday season to make this winter in Greenville a warm, cozy and entertaining time.
Miracle on 34th Street, Center Stage
Belief in the possibility of a little girl’s “miracle” makes the difference in Miracle on 34th Street, which heads to Greenville’s Center Stage in early December.
Kris Kringle’s story is set in a 1940s radio studio and is accompanied by singers, sound engineers and a piano to provide an old-fashioned Christmas pageant.
∎ Times and dates: from December 1 to 18, various times and dates
∎ Cost: $37 to $42
Everybody Knows It’s Christmas Tour (Chris Isaak), Peace Center
Chris Isaak has been in the holiday spirit for a few months now.
The Triple Threat: Country/rock singer, TV and movie star, arrives at the Peace Center in mid-December as Isaac’s tour stops in Greenville to perform his mid-October Christmas album , “Everybody Knows It’s Christmas”, as well as classics, like the 1989 single “Wicked Games”.
Isaak brings his second Christmas album to Greenville for a night of jingle and wintry cheer.
∎ Time and dates: 7:30 p.m., December 12
∎ Cost: $50 – $80
Stranger Things, Cafe & Then Some
In a play co-written by Cafe & Then Some director for 40 years, Matt Smith, Norma Jean and Dot take a golf cart on a journey through Greenville in search of the ghosts of each holiday season.
They start on Halloween and end on New Year’s Day, finding the uniqueness of Greenville’s holiday spirit throughout their track.
∎ Times and dates: 8:00 p.m., Thursday to Saturday; on view until January 31
∎ Cost: $25
The Nutcracker, multiple locations
The Nutcracker will be presented in three unique ways around Greenville this winter: as an exhibit (Upcountry History Museum), with a touch of Greenville (Carolina Ballet Theatre) and a traditional performance (International Ballet).
“It’s the story and choreography of The Nutcracker that’s been going on for 200 years,” said Sarah Shoemaker, executive director of the International Ballet. “It’s beautiful and classic, and it has timeless entertainment value.”
At the Carolina Ballet Theater, the backdrop and nuances of Greenville will appear throughout the performance, making the story a little closer to home.
The Upcountry History Museum will feature an exhibit of Walt Disney’s 2018 live-action version of “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms,” along with original props, ballet costumes, artwork and drawings from a collection of Walt Disney, and more.
∎ Upstate History Museum exhibit: open until February 19; $12 general admission, additional prices as follows
∎ Carolina Ballet Theatre: December 2-4; ticket prices: $35 – $75
∎ International Ballet: December 9-11, ticket prices: $25-$75
Winter Camp, Upstate Children’s Museum
Want to learn more about the meaning of the holiday season in different cultures around the world?
Five different customs and values of the people will be exhibited at Winter Camp, the Upstate Children’s Museum Guide to Las Posadas, Hanukkah, Winter Solstice, Kwanzza and Omisoka.
Visitors are sure to discover food and stories that foster unity, love, and celebrating the holiday season together.
∎ Times and dates: 9 a.m. to noon, December 19 to 23
∎ Cost: $40/day for non-members and $35/day for members
Treasure Island, Greenville Theater
Need a daytime theater option for the kids?
The character Jim Hawkins battles pirates across the sea in search of buried treasure as this Treasure Island adaptation is written by Carter Allen, instructional programmer for Greenville Theatre.
This version of Treasure Island will feature original musical arrangements of the songs sung at sea and is aimed specifically at young adults aged 5 to 12, which takes place in the morning and at a shorter duration.
∎ Times and dates: 10:30 a.m.; December 13 – 17
∎ Cost: $16.50
Disney on Ice Presents Let’s Celebrate, Bon Secours Wellness Arena
Experience some of Disney’s best as Mickey Mouse takes on more than 50 characters in an ice skating extravaganza at Bon Secours Wellness Arena from Wednesday, November 23-27.
∎ Times and dates: display at different times; November 23 to 27
∎ Cost: $20 – $40
Strangely Familiar, Greenville Center for Creative Arts
Three Greenville artists use the Greenville Center for Creative Arts gallery to creatively interrogate connections in the world around us, using objects and landscapes to confront the relationships of our reality.
In short: this exhibition of visual arts places objects in their place or not.
Artists Heather Deyling, Joseph Kameen and Andie Carver are the artisans of the Main Galley exhibition which opens on Friday, December 2.
∎ Times and dates: Tuesday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.; December 2 – January 25
∎ Cost: Free
Broadway Holiday Show, Greenville Theater
An original story centered around a young Greenville family whose daughter’s secret wish is to become a Broadway performer.
Featuring a live band and local upstate talent throughout the cast, which is written by Greenville Theater Artistic Director Producer Max Quinlan.
∎ Time & Dates: variable times; December 8 – 18
∎ Cost: $44
Witch, The Warehouse Theater
A peculiar and far beyond interesting modern fantasy comes “Witch,” a tale that revises an original 1621 play and twists the conflict of how men and women view ambition while helping those who feel misunderstood and ostracized.
This modern take on Witch is written by Jen Silverman and directed by Jay Briggs.
∎ Times and dates: 3:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.; December 2 – 18
∎ Cost: $35 – $45
– AJ Jackson covers arts, entertainment and more for The Greenville News and Anderson Independent Mail. Reach him by email at ajackson@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter @ajhappened.
