Arts & Entertainment
How to Get the Season Started, Dec. 9-11
The winter holiday season is upon us with an abundance of festive opportunities for song, service and seeing.
With all the music, seasonal craft-making, glittery lights and childlike revelry going on around the East Bay, there's no denying the holiday season is upon us.
All we have to do is partake of the abundance, or as poet Dana Gioia writes in her poem "Entrance"
"Whoever you are: step out of doors tonight,
Out of the room that lets you feel secure.
Infinity is open to your sight.
Whoever you are.
With eyes that have forgotten how to see
From viewing things already too well-known,
Lift up into the dark a huge, black tree
And put it in the heavens: tall, alone.
And you have made the world and all you see.
It ripens like the words still in your mouth.
And when at last you comprehend its truth,
Then close your eyes and gently set it free."
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Here are a few great picks of holiday spirit for the weekend:
What: For more than a decade, the Pacific Boychoir's Harmonies of the Season concerts have been an uplifting Bay Area tradition. This year's concert features Benjamin Britten's glorious Ceremony of Carols for boys' voices and harp, and other seasonal favorites both new and old.
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When: Saturday, Dec. 10 at 7:00 pm
Where: First Congregational Church of Berkeley, 2345 Channing Way, Berkeley.
What: Five East Bay Jewish congregations are joining together this year to present a Chanukah Shuk Arts and Crafts Fair open to the public featuring 40 artists.
When: Sunday, Dec. 11 from 8:30 am to 4:00 pm
Where: Temple Sinai, 2808 Summit St, Oakland.
Cost: Entrance is free
What: Celebrate the Legend of King Arthur in folktale, dance, ritual and song. Revels blends traditional music, dance, ritual and folk plays, presented by a large volunteer chorus of children and adults drawn from the community, and a number of highly talented professional actors, musicians, artists, directors, and “bearers of tradition” from many cultures.
When: tonight, Dec. 9 at 8:00 pm, and again Saturday Dec. 10 and Sunday Dec. 11 afternoons at 1:00 pm and 5:00 pm
Where: 1547 Lakeside Drive, Oakland.
Cost: tickets start at $19
What: Holiday singing, games, craft making for toddlers and young children.
When: Saturday, Dec. 10 at 11:00 am
Where: , 1301 Shattuck Ave, Berkeley.
Cost: $2
