By Estelle Rodis-Brown
Baby, it’s cold and dreary outside.
When Northeast Ohio’s gray, frigid weather threatens to dampen your holiday spirit, consider a vibrant sensory experience that showcases inspiring human talent. We’re talking about live performances at an indoor venue near you… some traditional, others with a refreshing twist.
We scoured online independent show guides cleveland–theater.com and akron-theater.com to bring you this list of holiday-themed live performances in Northeast Ohio. Since we provided an exhaustive list of live theater performances in our previous September/November issue, the list below focuses on live musical concerts, dance performances and special shows. From sugar plum fairies to dazzling pyrotechnic shows and daring acrobatics, escape into a holiday wonderland of your choice, colored by soaring voices, athletic artistry, inventive sets, heartwarming traditions and delightful surprises.
CONCERTS:
Indie/Rock/Classical Holiday Fusion with Light Show
The Wizards Of Winter
Canton Palace Theatre, 605 Market Ave N, Canton
7:30 p.m., Dec. 1
$60+
Acapella Harmonies
Straight No Chaser Christmas
KeyBank State Theatre, Playhouse Square, 1501 Euclid Ave., Cleveland
7:30 p.m., Dec. 2
$80+
Jazz & Blues
Preservation Jazz Hall Band – Creole Christmas
The Kent Stage, 175 East Main St., Kent
7:30 p.m., Dec. 5
$75+
Motown, Soul R&B
A Motown Christmas
Lorain Palace Theatre, 617 Broadway, Lorain
7:30 p.m., Dec. 8
$65+
Smooth Jazz (Saxophone)
Dave Koz Christmas Tour
KeyBank State Theatre, Playhouse Square, 1501 Euclid Ave., Cleveland
7 p.m., Dec. 10
$80+
Irish Vocal & Classic Pop, Dance, Instrumentals
Christmas with The Celts
Robins Theatre, 160 E Market St., Warren
7 p.m., Dec. 10
$40+
Holiday Neo-Classical
Mannheim Steamroller
KeyBank State Theatre, Playhouse Square, 1501 Euclid Ave., Cleveland
8 p.m., Dec. 16
$30+
Vocal Pop/Romantic Piano
Jim Brickman
Hanna Theatre, Playhouse Square, 2067 East 14th St., Cleveland
Dec. 16 (2 & 8 p.m.) – 17 (2 p.m.)
$140+
Family Christmas Show – Live Concert with Film
Elf in Concert
Mandel Concert Hall, 11001 Euclid Ave., Cleveland
7:30 p.m., Dec. 19 & 20
$90+ Tues. | $310+ Wed.
Rock Opera Fusion
Trans-Siberian Orchestra: The Ghosts Of Christmas Eve
Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, 1 Center Ct., Cleveland
3 & 7 p.m., Dec. 22
$75+
DANCE:
Ballet
Ballet Theatre Of Ohio – The Nutcracker
Akron Civic Theatre, 182 S. Main St., Akron
Nov. 25 (2 & 7 p.m.) & 26 (2 p.m.)
$65-$70+
Hip Hop Dance Fused to Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker and a DJ
The Hip Hop Nutcracker
Keybank State Theatre, Playhouse Square, 1501 Euclid Ave., Cleveland
7 p.m., Dec. 8
$40+
Ballet
Canton Ballet – The Nutcracker
Canton Palace Theatre, 605 Market Ave. N., Canton
2 p.m. & 7 p.m., Dec. 8-10
$50-$55+
Ballet
Nutcracker! Magical Christmas Ballet
Public Hall, 500 Lakeside Ave., Cleveland
3 & 7 p.m., Dec. 9
$50+
Ballet
Nutcracker! Magical Christmas Ballet
Music Hall Cleveland, E. 6th St., Cleveland
3 & 7 p.m., Dec. 9
$55+
Ballet
Cleveland Ballet – The Nutcracker
Connor Palace Theater, Playhouse Square, 1615 Euclid Ave, Cleveland
11 a.m., 1 p.m., 7 p.m., Dec. 14 – 23
$45+
Ballet
The Nutcracker
Robins Theatre, 160 E Market St., Warren
3 p.m., Dec. 17
$35+
SPECIAL PERFORMANCES:
Cirque Circus / Aerial Acrobatics
Cirque Dreams Holidaze
Powers Auditorium, 260 Federal Plz. E, Youngstown
7 p.m., Nov. 19
$70+
Cirque Circus / Aerial Acrobatics
Cirque du Soleil – Corteo
Wolstein Center, Cleveland State University, 2000 Prospect Ave., Cleveland
Nov. 22 – 26, 2023 (various showtimes)
$70-$90+
Cirque Circus/Live Musicians
A Magical Cirque Christmas
KeyBank State Theatre, Playhouse Square, 1501 Euclid Ave, Cleveland
4 p.m., Dec. 23
$60+
Photo by Nihal Demirci Erenay on Unsplash
