November 29, 2019
T he C olumbia P ress
8
Ready, set, time to kick off the holidays ...
The Columbia Press
Now that Thanksgiving has
passed, no one can deny the
holidays are in full swing.
Even those who hate see-
ing Christmas decorations at
Costco in October should find
themselves fully in the mood.
And there are plenty of hol-
idays treats to bring cheer:
Santa visits, holiday movies,
tree lightings, Christmas ba-
zaars and more.
Here are some of the most
notable in the first full week
after Thanksgiving:
v isits With s anta
Visits with Santa, sponsored
by the Liberty Theatre and the
Astoria Downtown Historic
District Association, will be
from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. every
Saturday between Thanksgiv-
ing and Christmas.
The event is free inside the
lobby of the Liberty Theatre,
1203 Commercial St., Astoria.
Parents should bring a camera
to capture the moment.
s anKta l uCia
The annual Sankta Lucia
Festival of Lights is at 7 p.m.
Friday, Nov. 29, in the audito-
rium and commons at Astoria
High School, 1001 W. Marine
Drive.
It includes special music,
food and dancing.
The Polka Dots will play
Left: The Polka Dots play accordian music
at the Sankta Lucia Festival of Lights.
Above: A scene from “Scrooged in Astoria.”
Right: Isabella Clement, Joe Justice and
Logan Mossman in “The Nutcracker.”
music for dancing around the
Christmas tree. Admission is
$1 per person or $5 per fam-
ily.
e lf , the M ovie
“Elf, the Movie” will be
shown at 2:30 p.m. Saturday,
Nov. 30, at the Liberty The-
atre, 1203 Commercial St.,
Astoria.
The movie stars Will Ferrell,
James Caan, Bob Newhart,
Ed Asner, Mary Steenburgen,
and Zooey Deschanel.
The free event is perfect for
families with children who
plan to visit with Santa earlier
in the day or attend the down-
town association’s holiday
tree lighting in front of the
theater after the movie.
l ight up d oWntoWn
Astoria’s annual Downtown
Lighting and Holiday Kickoff
is at 4:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov.
30 in front of the Liberty The-
atre, at the corner of Commer-
cial and 12th streets.
There will be caroling led
by the Q Choir, a Shop Plaid
Raffle, guest appearances and
more.
M essiah sing - along
A “Messiah” sing-along/
play-along sponsored by
North Coast Chorale is set for
4 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 1, at the
Performing Arts Center, 588
16th St., Astoria.
Participants are asked to
bring a donation of food or
money, which will be donat-
ed to Clatsop Community Ac-
tion’s Regional Food Bank.
Attendees can participate
in several ways. They can
simply listen to the choruses
and arias sung by the chorale
and soloists, they can sing
along (with musical scores
available in the lobby) or
they can bring an instrument
and play along with the ac-
companist.
g loBal d ay of g iving
Giving Tuesday, a global day
of giving, will be celebrated
with a holiday party from 5 to
7 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 3, in the
Liberty Theatre’s McTavish
Room.
The party includes holi-
day goodies, festive cocktails
and music from Astoria High
School’s Jazz Band. Doors
open at 4:45 p.m. No tickets
are necessary.
s Crooged
“Scrooged in Astoria,”
Christmas baskets
The Warrenton Firefight-
ers Association is taking
applications from needy
families for Christmas food
baskets. Register before 5
p.m. Friday, Dec. 6 at the
fire station, 225 S. Main
Ave.
loosely based on the tradition-
al holiday story, “A Christmas
Carol,” will be performed at
7 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays
and 2 p.m. Sundays, Dec. 6
through Dec. 22.
The musical melodrama is
a production of Astor Street
Opry Company and held at
the playhouse, 129 W. Bond
St., Astoria.
The play was written by Ju-
dith Niland, with music by
Phil Morrill and directed by
Stephanie Osborn.
Tickets are $30 for front-
row seats, $15 for all others
and $10 for children 10 and
younger. All Friday perfor-
mances are $10 for general
seating. Tickets are available
at asocplay.com.
The ticket booth opens an
hour before performances;
doors open a half hour before.
W inter Bazaar
Astoria Parks & Recreation
will have a winter bazaar and
craft fair from 9:30 a.m. to
4:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 7, at
the Astoria Recreation Center,
1555 W. Marine Drive.
Food drive donations are
welcome. Vendor booths are
available for $20 to $30. For
more information, contact
Desiree at 503-298-2470.
f estival of t rees
The annual Festival of Trees,
a fundraiser for Providence
hospital’s Innovation Fund,
is Saturday, Dec. 7, at Seaside
Civic and Convention Center,
415 First Ave.
There will be free public ad-
mission for tree viewing from
10 a.m. to 2 p.m. with festivi-
ties for children.
The dinner and auction be-
gins at 5:30 p.m. Tickets are
$150 per guest or $1,500 for a
table of 10. Tickets can be pur-
chased online at providence-
foundations.org/seasidegala.
t he n utCraCKer
Little Ballet Theatre’s 45th
annual production of “The
Nutcracker” will be performed
Dec. 7 and 8 on stage at the
Astoria High School Auditori-
um, 1001 W. Marine Drive.
Performances are at 2 and
7:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 7,
and 2 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 8.
Tickets are $21 for adults
and $16 for seniors and those
younger than 12. A $5 dis-
count is available to active
military members with ID and
their families for the Saturday
matinee (available only at the
box office an hour before the
performance).
Tickets are available at lib-
ertyastoria.showare.com. For
more information, call 503-
861-1971.