by Noella Noelophile®
Thanksgiving week is upon us! And we’re seeing signs of Christmas everywhere.
So, this week, we’re listing some of the upcoming scheduled Christmas-tree lightings, up and down the state, for you to put on your calendar.
(Photograph courtesy of the Old Sacramento Business Association, and used with permission.)
SACRAMENTO:
November 25, 2015 – 6:00 pm – Sacramento Grand Christmas Tree Lighting.
Fittingly, California’s state capital’s tree-lighting ceremony is an exciting one! Everyone gathers at K and Front Streets and counts down together. When they reach “zero”, the 58-foot City of Sacramento Christmas tree blazes to life for the first time–lit up by none other than Old Saint Nick himself.
Then, after the tree is lit, the show begins.
The unique Christmas program, “Macy’s Theatre of Lights”, is a free light-and-sound production, presented on the balconies and facades of Old Sacramento. Its first 2015 performance takes place at 6:15 Wednesday evening. This is a 20-minute multimedia presentation, incorporating both the story of early California settlers, and a live-action retelling of Clement Clarke Moore’s classic “A Visit from St. Nicholas”, better known as, ”Twas the Night Before Christmas”.
Can’t make it on the 25th, but you’ll be in the Sacramento area sometime between now and December 31? “Macy’s Theatre of Lights” runs Thursday through Sunday nights during the Christmas season. Performance times are 6:15 and 7:45 pm on each performance date. Special performances are scheduled for both Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve. Here’s the link for more information.
Sacramento Grand Christmas Tree Lighting happens Wednesday, November 25 at 6:00 pm in Old Sacramento, at the corner of K and Front Streets. The first performance of “Macy’s Theatre of Lights” for Christmas season 2015 follows the tree lighting, at 6:15 pm. Admission is free, and according to their Facebook page, the best place to see both the tree lighting and the “Theatre of Lights” performance is from the middle of K Street. “Theatre of Lights” performances continue throughout the Christmas season; here’s the link to show times.
NAPA:
November 25, 2015 – 6:00 pm Napa’s Christmas Tree Lighting.
Music, dance, cupcakes and hot chocolate will all be a part of the festivities, tomorrow evening in Napa’s Veterans Park. Fast becoming a Napa Christmas tradition, the ceremony includes performances by the Napa Dance Center, Tubas at Large and the Tap Dancing Christmas Trees. And the star of the show will be the 29-foot Christmas tree, which mayor Jill Techel will light.
Napa’s Christmas Tree Lighting takes place Wednesday, November 25th, 6:00 – 7:00 pm, in Veterans Park, at Third and Main in downtown Napa. Admission is free.
(Photo courtesy of Cannery Row Company, and used with permission.)
MONTEREY:
November 27, 2015 – 4:30 pm 21st Annual Cannery Row Holiday Tree Lighting.
Christmas carolers, free entertainment and a chance to see Santa’s reindeer are all on the schedule for Cannery Row’s 21st tree lighting, in Steinbeck Plaza. Then, at 5:45, the tree lighting ceremony takes place–followed by a chance to join Santa in his workshop from 6:00 till 9:00 that evening. (And Santa’s staying around! He’ll be in his workshop, at 700 Cannery Row, every Saturday and Sunday, from noon to 4:00 pm, from now through December 20th.)
The 21st Annual Cannery Row Holiday Tree Lighting festivities take place Friday, November 27, 2015, from 4:30 to 9:00 pm in Steinbeck Plaza and the Plaza in front of Bubba Gump’s. Admission is free.
Meanwhile…
December 4, 2015 – 5:00 pm Monterey’s Community Christmas Tree Celebration
How beautiful does this one sound: a Christmas-tree lighting ceremony by candlelight!
Carols, cookies, candles, cider and lots of Christmas spirit are all a part of this traditional celebration, offered by the City of Monterey, First Night Monterey and Old Monterey Business Association. Everyone’s invited to gather on the lawn of historic Colton Hall for this one-hour celebration to usher in the Christmas season.
Monterey’s Community Christmas Tree Celebration takes place Friday, December 4 at 5:00 pm on Colton Hall Lawn, 570 Pacific Street between Madison and Jefferson. Admission is free.
CARMEL:
December 4, 2015 – 3:30 pm Holiday Tree Lighting and Carmel Plaza Party.
Entertainment starts at 3:30 with a program that includes performances by the Carmel Middle School Chorus, Kendra Calhoun, and Myles Williams. Stephen Moorer will recite “Twas the Night Before Christmas,” and the Carmel Fire Department is set to deliver a certain “right jolly old elf” to take part in the celebration. The Monterey Bay Area Chapter of the American Red Cross will serve refreshments, while the Sunset Center will provide Santa with candy canes to distribute.
According to their event website, Mayor Jason Burnett will be lighting the tree at about 5:45 pm, “rain or shine”. (It wouldn’t dare rain!) Then, as the applause and all the “oohs” and “aahs” subside, the Carmel Plaza invites everyone to their annual open house, for refreshments and entertainment.
Carmel’s Holiday Tree Lighting and Carmel Plaza Party starts Friday, December 4, 2015, at 3:30 pm in Devendorf Park, on Ocean Avenue at Mission Street. Carmel Plaza’s open house takes place just after the tree lighting, on Ocean between Junipero and Mission. Admission to both events is free.