We’ve got it all here in Miami to keep the holiday season entertaining with things to do, places to go, and plenty of cheer.
Stroll down holiday lanes through a fantastical fairyland at Fairchild Botanic Garden, become entranced with sparkling lanterns at Jungle Island, and marvel at animal-shaped lights at Zoo Miami.
Sounds of the season resound with South Florida’s award-winning symphonies and a Grammy-winning chorale. Sugar Plum Fairies dance in a “Nutcracker” wonderland while Tiny Tim helps Ebenezer Scrooge confront his bah humbugs in the musical, “A Christmas Carol.”
(Courtesy Fairchild Botanic Garden)
Night at the Garden turns Fairchild Botanic Garden into a fairyland
Reality television stars make merry in Miami Beach, too, in what’s become a contemporary holiday tradition.
Here are our Top 10 holiday entertainment picks that will surely please everyone on your list.
FESTIVALS OF LIGHT
Lights twinkle throughout the area with a special holiday glow. Night at the Garden turns Fairchild Botanic Garden into a fairyland where motion-sensing technology helps plants and trees come to life. Night at the Garden runs through Jan. 12, 2025. At Fairchild Botanic Garden, 10901 Old Cutler Road, Coral Gables. Tickets are $22.56 - $36.80. www.thenightgarden.com.
(Jungle Island)
At Zoo Miami, one million animal-shaped lights along with a Merry Meadow (Dec. 20-23) are sure to get everyone in the spirit. The light show runs every weekend through Sunday, Dec. 29, 6:30 to 10 p.m., at Zoo Miami, 12400 SW 152nd St., Miami, Tickets are $19.95 - $26.50 plus tax. https://www.zoomiami.org/zoo-lights-2024.
Jungle Island’s Luminosa Festival is an illuminated trail with more than 40 stunning lamp scenes by 150 artisans using 120 tons of steel and 150,000 feet of silk – truly something to behold.
“Luminosa is set to dazzle visitors like never before," said Jeremy Hauwelaert, President & CEO of Jungle Island. “We're pushing the boundaries of imagination, blending cutting-edge technology with timeless storytelling. From our dragon lanterns to a storybook journey, we've created a nocturnal wonderland that will captivate guests of all ages.”
(Photo Steven Shires)
South Florida Symphony Orchestra embraces the joy of the season with its must-see Handel’s “Messiah.”
Luminosa runs through March 8, 2025 at Jungle Island, 1111 Parrot Jungle Trail, Miami. Tickets are $21.51 - $30.51 plus fees. https://luminosamiami.com/
MAKING MUSIC
Orchestral sounds of the holiday classics are a treat. Some of the best holiday music comes via a full symphony and there are several to choose from this month.
(Diego Redel)
Molly Turner: New World Symphony second-year fellow conductor leads the symphony in Sounds of the Season
South Florida Symphony Orchestra embraces the joy of the season with its must-see Handel’s “Messiah” (Part 1, the Christmas portion) culminating in the iconic “Hallelujah” chorus. Holiday pops are on the program too with singalongs of “Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree,” “The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire),” “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” “Ocho Kandalikas,” “Ave Maria” (Schubert), and “Dreidel Song.”
“SFSO’s annual ‘Messiah’ concert has fast become a time-honored tradition,” said Jacqueline Lorber, president and CEO of South Florida Symphony Orchestra.
(Alex Markow)
Grammy-award winning a capella group Seraphic Fire in a photo from its last season's Christmas performance in Coral Gables at Church of the Little Flower
The concert takes place Sunday, Dec. 8, 4 p.m. at Barry University’s Shepard and Ruth K. Broad Performing Arts Center, 113000 NE 2nd Ave., Miami Shores. Tickets start at $25 with additional fees. southfloridasymphony.org/handels-messiah
New World Symphony Fellows Conductor Molly Turner conducts a program in “Sounds of the Season,” with New World Symphony Fellows dressed in festive attire. Bring a blanket and chair and sprawl out on the New World Center lawn to enjoy the concert outdoors on the giant Wallcast. Saturday, Dec. 21, 7:30 p.m., at New World Center, 500 17th St., Miami Beach. Tickets are $70 - $110, and the Wallcast is free. www.nws.edu.
(Courtesy Seraphic Fire)
Guest conductor Anthony Trecek-King leads A Seraphic Fire Christmas
A CANDLELIT CHRISTMAS
A Seraphic Fire Christmas features a capella voices in a magnificent candlelit setting, singing fan favorites including, “O Come All Ye Faithful,” “Silent Night,” and “We Three Kings.”
Guest conductor Anthony Trecek-King will lead the Grammy-Award winning South Florida-based group, and said their rendition of “Ave Maria,” will be a musical journey for the audience.
“It is a familiar text, but it’s an arrangement by a composer of African descent,” said Trecek-King.
A Seraphic Fire Christmas will be performed at various venues throughout the county:
Saturday, Dec. 7, 7:30 p.m., St. Sophia Greek Orthodox Church, 2401 SW 3rd Ave., Miami
Friday, Dec. 13, 8 p.m., at Church of the Little Flower, 2711 Indian Mound Trail, Coral Gables
Sunday, Dec. 15, 4 p.m., at The Moss Center 10590 SW 211 St., Cutler Bay
Thursday, Dec. 19, 8 p.m., at Aventura Cultural Arts Center, 3385 NE 188th St., Aventura.
(Alexander Izilieav)
Jennifer Lauren as the Sugar Plum Fairy in Miami City Ballet’s “George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker.”
Tickets for all performances range from $65 to $85. www.seraphicfire.com
On Their Toes
A winter wonderland comes to life on the Arsht Center Stage as the Miami City Ballet journeys into the world of George Balanchine’s “Nutcracker” set to the iconic Tchaikovsky score and played by a live orchestra. Dancing the role of the Sugarplum Fairy, principal dancer Jennifer Lauren, who joined MCB in 2007, will mark her final performance in the ballet. Performances are Dec. 13-24 at the Arsht Center, 1300 Biscayne Blvd., Miami. www.miamicityballet.org. Tickets are $38-$224.
(Courtesy Actors’ Playhouse)
The classic Charles Dickens tale takes a musical turn at Actors’ Playhouse with “A Christmas Carol, The Musical”
Written by Sesame Street veteran Noel MacNeal and singer and songwriter Jim Camacho, “Mouse King: The Untold Story of The Nutcracker,” makes its return to South Florida at the Mandelstam Theater. The family-friendly musical reimagines the renowned story of “The Nutcracker” as told by the Nutcracker’s adversaries – the mice.
Returning for its eleventh year, Camacho said, “’The Mouse King’ has become a tradition for the community.”
“Mouse King: The Untold Story of The Nutcracker,” runs Friday, Dec. 13, 7 p.m.; Saturday, Dec. 14, 1 and 7 p.m., and Sunday, Dec. 15. 1 p.m., at the Mandelstam Theater, 85730 SW 57th Ave., Miami. Tickets are $35-$60. https://www.onthestage.tickets/show/the-mandelstam-theater/mouse-king-90168/tickets
BAH HUMBUG
(Courtesy Nina West via Facebook)
Nina West of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” fame hosts “A Drag Queen Christmas,” making its final tour stop at he Fillmore Miami Beach.
The classic by Charles Dickens takes a musical turn at Actors’ Playhouse with “A Christmas Carol, The Musical, ” a show that promises to melt even the coldest hearts. Tiny Tim, the Cratchit family, and the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future try to convince greedy businessman Ebeneezer Scrooge to change his bah humbug ways by giving him a glimpse into his future. The show runs through through Sunday, Dec. 22 at Actors’ Playhouse, 280 Miracle Mile, Coral Gables. Tickets are $25 - $40. www.actorsplayhouse.org
KICKING UP THEIR HEELS
An epic lineup of stars from television’s “RuPaul’s Drag Race” come out for the longest running drag tour in America, the 10th edition of Murray & Peter's A Drag Queen Christmas, set to take the stage at the Fillmore Miami Beach at The Jackie Gleason Theater. A roster of drag queen legends work it with Nina West, winner of the 11th season, as host. “Drag Race” winners, fan favorites, legends, and Miss Congeniality, plus queens from “Drag Race” Season 16 and “All Stars 9” cozy up for the holiday spectacular. The show in Miami Beach is the close of the national tour. Catch it Sunday, Dec. 29. 8 p.m., at Fillmore Live, 1700 Washington Ave., Miami Beach. Age restriction to 18-plus. Tickets $86.80 - $111.80. https://www.fillmore-miami.com/