Bach at New Year’s: The Six Brandenburg Concertos
Academy of Music, Northampton
Monday, Dec. 30 at 7 p.m.
The Berkshire Bach Society and NEPM present Bach at New Year’s: The Six ‘Brandenburg’ Concertos, an event that has been a holiday tradition since 1993. Nine-time Grammy Award winner and Artistic Director Eugene Drucker leads the Berkshire Bach Ensemble in all six of Bach’s iconic works that combine virtuosity, beauty, introspection, and pure toe-tapping joy. Join Berkshire Bach for an evening of great music and dazzling performances to start your New Year on a high note.
Valley Moonstompers
The Marigold Theater, Easthampton
Thursday, Dec. 19, doors open at 7 p.m., music starts at 8:30 p.m.
Inspired by the classic Jamaican sounds, the Valley Moonstompers Society is a western Mass collective of musicians exploring the hypnotic dance rhythms of ska, rocksteady and dub and more. You can catch them at their monthly residency every third Thursday at the Marigold Theater. They just released their super danceable version of “Deck the Halls.” Plus! they were with The Fabulous 413 for Live Music Friday last week.
Phantom Sheep: Annual LaughCrafters Holiday Show
The Unitarian Universalist Society of Greater Springfield
245 Porter Lake Drive, Springfield
Thursday, Dec. 19 at 7:30 p.m.
Western Mass.’s longest running professional comedy troupe “Phantom Sheep” returns with a free performance to celebrate and satirize the season. The show will feature sketch comedy along with plenty of live unscripted scenes created on the spot, each with a holiday twist and the unique Phantom Sheep brand of parody and silliness. For over 20 years, this troupe of writers, performers, directors, and instructors have provided entertainment and arts education for schools, theaters, libraries, and more.
Kimaya Diggs & Friends Holiday Show
Iron Horse, Northampton
Friday, Dec. 20 at 7 p.m.
Join songstress Kimaya Diggs and her delightful jazz trio for a night of holiday magic featuring an eclectic lineup of special guest stars from across New England. This event is for lovers of tinsel, sing-along fanatics, and folks who want to kick off the holiday season in style. Come for the music, stay for the giveaways, surprises, and special guests. Oh, and the outfits (dressing up is highly encouraged!
A Special Holiday Reading of Santaland Diaries
Colonial Theater, Pittsfield
Friday, Dec. 20 at 7:30 p.m.
Get ready to laugh at the holiday season like never before with Santaland Diaries, David Sedaris’ darkly comedic account of his stint as a Christmas elf named “Crumpet” at Macy’s presented in its original version as published in The New Yorker. This one-night-only reading features Ron Bagden, a longtime Macy’s employee who has seen his fair share of wild holiday seasons, bringing a unique and personal touch to this delightfully irreverent monologue.
Wicked Under the Stars
Springfield Museums
Saturday Dec. 21 – Sunday, Dec. 22 at 4 p.m.
Thursday, Dec. 26 – Tuesday, Dec. 31 at 4 p.m.
Can’t get enough of the blockbuster fantasy? Experience the music of the untold story of the witches of Oz in the Springfield Museums’ Seymour planetarium. Sing along to your favorite songs and be dazzled by spectacular effects created by the full-dome Zeiss projector. And if you go, there will be lots of Grinchmas things to do!
Hatfield Luminarium
Saturday, Dec. 21 at 4:30 p.m.
Here’s a local town tradition that goes back over four decades! Held on the Saturday before Christmas, the Hatfield Luminarium draws hundreds of people in a celebration of light. It starts with a concert at the First Congregational Church of Hatfield. The library offers a book giveaway and craft activities, there’s a town wide lighting of luminarium candles, a holiday program at Town Hall, and refreshments with Santa at the fire station.
40th Annual Winter Solstice Storytelling and Songfest
First Congregational Church, Ashfield
Saturday, Dec. 21 at 7 p.m.
Head to Ashfield for an evening of storytelling and music to drive the cold winter away on the longest night of the year. For the 40th anniversary, guest storyteller Joyce White Deer-Vincent will be joining the group. Performers include Sonny Crawford and Emily Gopen, Christy Grecsek, Yosl Kurland, Peggy Davis and Aaron Bousel, Sarah Pirtle, John Porcino, ReBekka Tippens, Tim Van Egmond, and Rochelle Wildfong. All donations received at the door will benefit the Food Bank of Western Mass, Partners in Health, and The Center for Biological Diversity. If you’d like, you can bring a treat for snaking during intermission.
Arcadia Players
A Handel Holiday Celebration: Messiah and a Chandos Anthem
Grace Church, Amherst
Saturday Dec. 21, at 7:30 p.m.
Arcadia Players presents an all-Handel holiday concert featuring Part 1 of Messiah (the Christmas portion) and Hallelujah from Part 2, as well as the Chandos Anthem “My Song Shall be Alway.” Handel wrote this setting of the Advent Psalm 89 for performance at Cannons, a musical establishment presided over by the Duke James Brydges, later known as Lord Chandos. You can enjoy (listen to, not sing along with) familiar music from Messiah, and discover some of Handel’s best choral music you may not yet have heard. Andrus Madsen directs.
The Nields Holiday Show
The Parlor Room, Northampton
Saturday, Dec. 21 at 7:30 p.m.
The Nields are delighted to announce the release of their much-anticipated twenty-first album, Circle of Days. An homage to the calendar ––and really, time itself–– this collection of songs is a testament to the band’s enduring creativity and unwavering commitment to their craft.
Western MA Tango
Live Music Milonga with the Emiliano Messiez Trio
Northampton Center for the Arts
Sunday, Dec. 22 at 3 p.m.
Western MA Tango is a dedicated group of tanguera/os with the mission of collaborating to maintain a warm, welcoming tango family and create opportunities for the exploration of the dance form. Their second live music milonga (tango dance) features Emiliano Messiez , a Latin Grammy nominee composer, pianist and music director, who has performed worldwide at venues including Lincoln Center, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Houston Opera Theater, and others. Add 33 Hawley to that list!
The Country Christmas Singalong Spectacular with Zara Bode
Academy of Music, Northampton
Sunday, Dec. 22 at 4 p.m.
With a lineup of classic carols, quirky original tunes, and hilariously engaging trivia to test your holiday know-how, the Country Christmas Singalong Spectacular with Zara Bode will be a treat reminiscent of Christmas specials of yore. Renowned for her quick wit and enchanting voice, Zara has a love for a well-crafted show, an eye for treasures hidden in the post-Christmas clearance shelf and an ear for seasonal tunes that aren’t sung enough.
We Celebrate the Light
Bombyx, Northampton
Sunday, Dec. 22 at 4 p.m.
Join beloved local authors Jane Yolen and Heidi E.Y. Stemple for this community interfaith holiday celebration. Families are invited to make light-inspired crafts provided by BOMBYX in-house congregations, Beit Ahavah, The Reform Synagogue of Greater Northampton, and Florence Congregational Church. Jane and Heidi will read their new picture book We Celebrate the Light, and Little Roots will provide musical accompaniment. A community fire will cap off the twinkly evening!
Jeff Belanger's The Fright Before Christmas
Shea Theater, Turners Falls
Sunday, Dec. 22 at 7:30 p.m.
There’s a line in Andy Williams’ “It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” which goes, “There’ll be scary ghost stories and tales of the glories of Christmases long, long ago.” Storyteller, adventurer and journalist Jeff Belanger brings the spooky back to the yuletide time of year with this eerie holiday show. From the origins of the holiday to the monsters and ghosts that lurk in its shadows, Jeff will take you on a multi-media journey of this haunting holiday! Jeff Belanger is a storyteller, adventurer, journalist, and one of the most visible explorers of the unexplained today.