Community Corner

See Santa Claus in the Christmas City: Your Weekend

It's the last weekend to visit Christkindlmarkt, Christmas City Village or catch the Christmas City Follies.

You’d better not pout. You’d better not cry. You’d better not shout. I’m telling you why: Santa Claus is coming to the Moravian Book Shop at 6:30 p.m. Friday.

You’ll also be able to find him at Christkindlmarkt and the Shoppes at Main Street Commons this weekend—the last weekend before the big day arrives. So be good for goodness sake.

As the days before Christmas dwindle down to a precious few, there are still plenty of opportunities to enjoy all that the Christmas City has to offer during the season. For example:

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  • The Christmas City Follies XIV, the Touchstone Theatre’s vaudevillian celebration of Christmas in Bethlehem, plays Thursday through Saturday at 8 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets are $25 and $15 for students and seniors. Advance tickets may be purchased at 610-867-1689 or online at www.touchstone.org.
  • Christkindlmarkt resumes for its fifth seasonal weekend at SteelStacks on Thursday, featuring aisles of handmade works by the nation’s finest artisans; traditional and contemporary holiday music; and a variety of food from vendors offering bratwursts, strudel, German roasted almonds, barbeque and more. Christkindlmarkt Bethlehem hours are Thursday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.; and Sunday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Advance tickets for Christkindlmarkt are $8 for ages 13 and older, $4 for ages 6-12, and admission is free for ages 5 and under. ArtsQuest members are also admitted free.
  • Meanwhile, in the Historic North Side Downtown, another traditional German-style holiday market, Christmas City Village, will reopen Friday for its fourth weekend in the Sun Inn Courtyard and spaces near the Historic Hotel Bethlehem and the Central Moravian Church. The wooden market huts are filled with unique Christmas gift ideas. As you shop, enjoy bratwurst with sauerkraut and warm up with a hot beverage including the popular hot mulled wine from Germany called Gluhwein. The market is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday.
  • The Bethlehem Live Advent Calendar unveils a live Christmas treat from the front door of the 1810 Goundie House at 505 Main St. at 5:30 p.m. sharp every day through Dec. 23. In years past, those treats have included special performances, holiday sweets and other gifts.
  • The Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites will continue to offer its seasonal holiday tours, which include the Christmas City Stroll, Scenic Horsedrawn Carriage Rides, the Bethlehem by Night Bus Tour and the holiday version of the Rise & Fall of Bethlehem Steel. For more information on tour times or to purchase tickets, contact the Historic Bethlehem Visitor Center at 505 Main St., call 1-800-360-TOUR or view this website: www.historicbethlehem.org.
  • Nostalgic for an old-time, feel-good Christmas movie? Go see White Christmas on the big screen at the Frank Banko Alehouse Cinemas at noon Saturday. The 1954 classic starred Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye and Rosemary Clooney. Tickets are $7.50, less for students, seniors and ArtsQuest members.
  • The College Hill Moravian Church, 72 W. Laurel St., Bethlehem, will host a Quiet Christmas Service at 5 p.m. Saturday, the longest night of the year. It will be a special service of music, readings, meditation and prayer. The service is a time to reflect on losses and joys and to discover the hope of the season. A labyrinth walk will precede the service from 4 to 4:45 p.m.
  • Come out to Godfrey Daniels on Sunday afternoon at 2 to sing Christmas Carols with club co-founder and popular local singer Dave Fry. Admission is $7.50. Reservations are recommended.

Other events of note in Bethlehem this weekend:

  • The lovely and talented Sarah Ayers, a favorite among local music fans, sings at the Musikfest Café at 7:30 p.m. Friday. Tickets are $20 and $15.
  • Decorated local long-form improvisational comedy team Mandudebro performs at the Frank Banko Alehouse Cinemas at SteelStacks at 11 p.m. Friday. Tickets are $5. Cheap.
  • SouthSide Johnny & The Asbury Jukes, well-known and well-loved purveyors of New Jersey soul and R&B, will perform at the Musifkest Café at 7:30 p.m. Saturday. Tickets are $44 and $34.
  • The Associated Mess, the Lehigh Valley’s best-known short-form improvisational comedy troupe, hilariously celebrates Festivus (for the rest of us?) at 10:45 p.m. Saturday in the Fowler Blast Furnace Room at SteelStacks. Tickets are $5 and $4 for ArtsQuest members. 

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