The Christmas season is upon us, and with it, a full calendar of holiday concerts, shows, and community events. Here a guide to some of the many holiday happenings in and around the East Bay, in the days and weeks to come.

The Big Houses

Linden Place Mansion Celebrates the Art of Christmas
A towering Christmas tree framed by a four-story spiral staircase, elegant decorations on every mantle and in every nook and cranny, original artwork by top local artists…these are just a few of the many delights that await you this Christmas season at Linden Place Mansion. This year, the elegant décor throughout the mansion is complimented by original artwork by members of the Providence Art Club including watercolors, ceramics, glass, handmade books, illustrations and prints, paintings, sculpture, glass and more. The mansion’s parlors, bedrooms, and magnificent chapel-like Gothic conservatory are magnificently transformed for your enjoyment. The mansion will be open through Sunday, Jan. 6. Self-guided tours are available Tuesdays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sundays from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $12, $10 for seniors and students, $5 for children and free for kids under 12. Don’t forget to visit Linden Place’s Museum Shop which is stocked with wonderful hostess gifts and a broad range of Rhode Island history books as well as an extensive collection of gifts for all ages and styles.

Blithewold hosts 'A Family Gathering'
Using archival materials for inspiration, Blithewold’s decorators volunteer their time and talents to develop a new theme each Christmas that explores the interests of the Van Wickle family during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. This year, their theme is called “A Family Gathering”. Diary entries give a glimpse into the family’s Christmas and New Year traditions allowing a recreation of Christmas weekend at Blithewold in 1910.
Open through New Year's Day; Tuesday through Sunday 11 a.m. – 5 p.m.; Thursdays and Fridays 11 a.m. – 8 p.m.; Closed Mondays.

Christmas at the Newport Mansions
Christmas at the Newport Mansions returns to The Breakers, The Elms and Marble House with newly imagined holiday decor through New Year's Day. Dozens of volunteers have spent a month working on the decorations,  putting up trees, hanging ornaments,  garlands and wreaths, and decorating fireplace mantels, among other activities.  Throughout the three houses, there will be a total of 25 large decorated Christmas trees, plus additional smaller potted trees and topiaries. Hundreds of live flowers will add to the decor in each house, including poinsettias, lilies, cyclamen, azaleas, paperwhites, amaryllis and mini-evergreens.  Windows in each mansion are lit with individual white candles. New this year, professional event designers will create contemporary holiday tablescapes in the dining rooms at Marble House and The Elms, and in the Breakfast Room of The Breakers, to provide inspiration and ideas to visitors for ways they can decorate their own holiday tables. A Winter Passport ticket providing daytime admission to up to 4 houses can be purchased for $30 for adults, $10 for children 6-17. Children under the age of 6 are admitted free.  Individual house tickets are also available. Tickets can be purchased online at www.NewportMansions.org, or at each property. 


Special Events

Sparkle! An Outdoor Family Event
Festive holiday fun for the entire family! Stroll through Blithewold’s illuminated gardens and greenhouse and be invigorated by that crisp winter air. Enjoy singing with our carolers and savor hot cocoa and s’mores around a roaring bonfire in Blithewold’s Enclosed Garden. Held Fridays, December 14 and 21 from 5 to 8 p.m. Member Adult – $5, Member Child – $3; Non-Member Adult – $16, Non-Member Child – $3. Visit Blithewold.org for more information or to register.

Starlit Strolls
Discover a new way to celebrate the season! Enjoy an illuminated stroll along the winding paths of Blithewold’s Enclosed Garden. Take in the wonder of trees and paths that twinkle, sparkle and glow. Our scavenger hunt will offer you the opportunity to take a closer look at the handcrafted lanterns and ornaments that light your way through this delightful garden promenade. All ages welcome! Thursdays through December 27 from 5 to 8 p.m.
This event is free with regular admission. Visit Blithewold.org for more information or to register.

Holiday Evenings at the Newport Mansions
Holiday Evenings at the Newport Mansions recreate the ambience of an evening soirée during the Gilded Age.  These open house evenings allow guests to stroll at their leisure through the decorated house, listening to live holiday music and enjoying cookies, eggnog and cider. Holiday Evenings at The Breakers are scheduled for Saturdays, Dec. 1, 8, 22 and 29, from 6 to 8 p.m. On Dec. 15, guests can enjoy a Holiday Evening Duet: The Elms and Marble House, and see both of those houses for the price of one, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Admission to Holiday Evenings is $35 in advance, $45 day-of the event.  Children 6-17 are admitted for $10 in advance, $15 day-of. Children under the age of 6 are admitted free. Preservation Society members enjoy reduced admission, $30 in advance, $35 day-of. On December 15, a single ticket provides admission to The Elms and Marble House, as well as shuttle service operating between the two houses. More information and tickets are available online at www.NewportMansions.org, or call 401/847-1000.
               
Holiday Cocktail Party at Linden Place
On Saturday, Dec. 8 from 6 to 8 p.m., Linden Place opens its doors for an intimate celebration in the decorated mansion featuring stationed foods and butler-style hors d'oeuvres, cash bar and live jazz on the mansion’s Steinway piano. Tickets are $50, $45 for Linden Place members. Space is limited so call to reserve space at 401/253-0390 or info@lindenplace.org.
 
Family Fun Day
Linden Place and the Bristol Art Museum come together on Saturday, Dec. 15 to welcome families to the mansion and museum for a free Holiday Family Fun Day from 1 to 4 p.m. Featuring tours of the mansion and art museum, arts & crafts, letter writing to Santa, story time with Mrs. Katz and her Hats, photos with Santa in the mansion, a concert with the Wheeler School Handbell Ringers and cookies and hot chocolate, this afternoon of fun is not to be missed. Bring an unwrapped toy to put underneath Linden Place’s Christmas tree to be donated to Toys for Tots.


Music

Christmas concert in Bristol
The Bristol County Chorus will present their 38th annual Christmas concert on Sunday, Dec. 2; 3 p.m., at St. Mary's Church on Wood Street in Bristol. The Chorus and orchestra will be conducted by new director of music, Nicholas Rocha, alongside guest conductor and group founder, Joan Roth. This year titled A Christmas Gloria, the concert celebrates themes of peace and rejoicing through beloved holiday music by master Baroque composers including Bach, Handel, and Vivaldi. The chorus will be performing excerpts from the Christmas portion of Messiah, as well as Vivaldi’s Gloria in D. The second half of the concert will feature contemporary holiday classics, including the Many Moods of Christmas, Grown Up Christmas List — made popular by Amy Grant — and the Bristol Christmas sing-along. Tickets are available locally at the George Hail Library in Warren, Paper Packaging and Panache in Bristol, and online at bccachristmasgloriabrownpapertickets.com. Tickets are $15 in advance, and $20 at the door. 

Fall River Symphony Holiday Pops Concert
The Fall River Symphony Holiday Pops Concert will be Sunday, Dec. 2 at 3 p.m. in the Jackson Arts Center at Bristol Community College. Special guests will be the urban contemporary gospel group Ashmont Hill and the SouthCoast Community Chorus. Tickets will be available at the door for $20 or can be purchased in advance from the FRSO, P. O. Box 9034, Fall River, MA 02720 for the reduced price of $15. Children and students are $5. Tickets can also be purchased on the Symphony website, http://www.fallriversymphonyorchestra.org or by calling Elizabeth Doherty, President of the Symphony Society at 508-678-2241 . Refreshments will be served.

Jesse Liam to perform for the Holidays at Weaver Library
Enjoy the uplifting music of Jesse Liam and Dad Jack Gauthier at the Weaver Library on Monday, December 3, 2018 at 7pm. An exuberant, warm, crowd-pleasing duo, Jesse and Jack offer their interpretations of the best of holiday music as well as some of the duos’ favorite songs. Jesse’s talent and his infectious enthusiasm will bring joy to your holiday. Be part of Jesse’s Annual Toy Drive and bring joy to others with a toy donation. Weaver Library is located at 41 Grove Avenue, East Providence. This concert is free and open to all. Questions? Contact the library at 401-434-2453 or see www.eastprovidencelibrary.org.

Michael DiMucci in Bristol
Michael DiMucci, a hugely popular tenor in the style of Josh Groban, performs fireside on Friday evening, Dec. 7 at 7:30 p.m. and on Sunday Dec. 9 at 2 p.m. Tickets are $25, $20 for members. $15 Colt Circle members. For more information visit www.lindenplace.org or call 401/253-0390.  
 
On Friday, December 14th at 7:30pm, we host our Celtic Christmas Concert. Robbie O’Connell on vocals and guitar and Rose Clancy on fiddle perform Celtic classics as well as little known carols and Irish American songs which celebrate Christian and pagan traditions and the winter solstice.  Tickets are $25, $20 for members. $15 Colt Circle members. 

A Musical Christmas in Newport
The one-hour concert includes beloved carols Joy to the World, Angels We Have Heard on High, The Little Drummer Boy and many more holiday favorites sung by the St. Mary’s Parish Choir. Get your voices ready for a joyous sing-a-long! At St. Mary's Church in Newport, Saturday, Dec. 8 at 7:30 p.m.
and Sunday, Dec. 9 at 2 p.m.; tickets $25 Adults, $5 Children

Music in the Living Room at Blithewold
Enhance your visit to Blithewold and enjoy the holiday decorations in the Mansion by attending our Music in the Living Room Series! Blithewold extends a sincere thanks to these generous performers who bring the gift of music into our Living Room during this Holiday Season. Saturdays and Sundays through Dec. 30; 3 to 4 p.m. Concerts are included with regular admission. Reserved seats can be held for an additional $2 fee. Blithewold, 101 Ferry Road, Bristol; for more information visit Blithewold.org.

Windharp at Linden Place
Round out your holidays and begin your New Year’s weekend on Dec. 28 at 7:30 p.m. with an intimate musical performance by RI’s own folk group, Windharp, a quartet of two women and two men who sing in rich four-part harmony.  When not singing acapella, their songs are accompanied by guitars, flute, Irish whistles, mandolin, Celtic harp and Irish bodhran. This program celebrates the Christmas season and welcomes the New Year with music from throughout the British Isles and Celtic lands. Tickets are $20, $15 for members. Free for Colt Circle members. For more information visit www.lindenplace.org or call 401/253-0390.  


Where's Santa?

Weaver Library, East Providence
Wednesday, Dec. 12, 4 to 7 p.m.
Bring your camera to take photos with Santa. Kids can also decorate holiday cookies. All ages are welcome.
The Very Merry Dickens Carolers will also be joining us from 5 to 6 p.m. They will be strolling through the library dressed in Victorian costumes and singing songs of the season in a rich, four-part a cappella harmony.

Popham Rocks, Riverside
Saturday, Dec. 8 beginning at 10 a.m.
Santa doesn’t always come on a sleigh. In Riverside, he comes by boat! Families are invited to see Santa take a boat ride around Riverside and conclude his journey with a trip around Pomham Rocks Lighthouse on Saturday, December 8. Santa will leave the dock at Haines Park at 10 a.m. on the Lady Pomham, weather permitting, and will motor around the Terrace, arriving at Sabin Point Park at about 10.40 a.m., before continuing to the lighthouse. To celebrate Santa’s arrival, members of Friends of Pomham Rocks Lighthouse will greet guests at Sabin Point Park with Munchkins and hot chocolate

The Newport Mansions
Santa Claus will make a special trip to Newport from the North Pole to visit the houses in December. Children can visit with Santa Claus in a spectacular setting from noon to 3 p.m. at The Breakers on December 2, Marble House on December 9, and The Elms on December 16. The visit with Santa is included in the regular admission price. Don’t forget your camera!


Where's my tree?

Looking for a place to choose and cut a tree? Here's a few local options, courtesy of the Rhode Island Christmas Tree Growers Association. Be sure to call in advance to make sure they have what you are looking for!
• Boughs & Berry Farm
255 Peckham Road, Little Compton,
401/635-8582
• Clark's Christmas Tree Farm
4191 Main Road, Tiverton
401/624-4119
• Pachet Brook Tree Farm
4484 Main Road, Tiverton
401/624-4872
• Sweet Berry Farm
915 Mitchell’s Lane, Middletown
401/847-3912
• Thurston Tree Farm
664 Union Street, Portsmouth
401/846-6789
• Pine Crest Christmas Tree Farm
294 Pine Hill Road
Westport
774/309-0522
• Ferolbink Farms
993 Neck Road, Tiverton
401/624-4107