Entertainment writer Ed Balint suggests fun things to do in November and December.
1. Light Up Downtown Canton
Light Up Downtown will be Dec. 3 in downtown Canton, featuring 14 city blocks of attractions.
Presented by Canton Regional Chamber of Commerce, the event runs from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. and is free to the public.
The 720 Market Village of Shops will feature local vendors from 4:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the DoubleTree by Hilton. Santa and Mrs. Claus will be present for greetings alongside a festive photo booth, musical entertainment and even live reindeer. There also will be a live nativity scene coordinated by Stephen Martyr Lutheran Church near the Salvation Army.
Downtown festivities also include a visit by Santa and horse and sleigh rides. The Little Roaming Railroad will circle the Central Plaza Christmas tree.
A 6 p.m. stage show is planned at Centennial Plaza with live entertainment, including local high school music performances by Sound of South, McKinley Singers and Dajeun Dickerson. The Vocal Fusion, an cappella group, also will perform.
From 6 to 6:45 p.m., the Center Ice Figure Skating Club will skate at the Hall of Fame ice rink. Fireworks are planned at 6:45 p.m. From 7 to 8:30 p.m., Santa and Mrs. Claus will take photos and meet guests in Centennial Plaza.
2. ‘Polar Express’ at Palace Theatre
Canton Palace Theatre will show “Polar Express” at 3 p.m. Nov. 28 as part of its holiday movie and sensory cinema series.
Sensory cinema is a theater environment tailored to attendees with sensory processing challenges, including lower sound levels, theater lights remaining on, dietary sensitive offerings at the concession stand, trained staff and family restrooms.
Doors open at 2:30 p.m. To purchase $10 general admission tickets, go to cantonpalacetheatre.org.
Admission includes hot chocolate and a jingle bell for each attendee. Tickets also will be sold at the door. Palace Theatre is at 605 Market Ave. N.
3. Record Store Day set on Black Friday
Area record stores will participate in Record Store Day on Nov. 28, which is Black Friday.
Special releases will be available, including Big Head Todd and the Monsters, “Sister Sweetly,” Benson Boone, “Pulse,” Cage the Elephant, “Live from the Vic in Chicago,” Creed, “Live in San Antonio,” Devo, “Merry Something to Do,” Billy Joel, “Live from Long Island,” The Notorious B.I.G., “Big Poppa (Remix),” Eric Carr from KISS, liquid vinyl edition of “Rockology,” Prince and the Revolution, “Around the World in a Day,” Ratt, “Invasion of Your Privacy (40th anniversary)” Led Zeppelin, “Trampled Under Foot,” Chappell Roan, “The Subway/The Giver,” Post Malone, “Long Bed,” Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, “The Live Anthology,” and Montrose/Sammy Hagar, “Live 1973 − KSAN Radio Session.”
Those and other RSD Black Friday titles are only released physically at record stores and not online, according to the Record Store Day website. Individual record stores will carry select titles from the Black Friday list.
Hollow Bone Records, 2721 W. Market St. in Fairlawn in Summit County, will open at 9 a.m. Nov. 28. Also participating in the special event will be Blackbird Records in Medina and Wooster.
Hollow Bone will have a sale all weekend, running through 5 p.m. Nov. 30, with 20% off all records except for Black Friday titles and already discounted items.
Blackbird Records, 8 Public Square in downtown Medina, will be open 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Nov. 28 and 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Nov. 29. Blackbird Records, 126 S Market St. in downtown Wooster, will be open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Nov. 28 and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Nov. 30.
Also expect Erie St Vinyl, 46 Erie St. N in downtown Massillon and Quonset Hut, 3775 Cleveland Ave. NW in Canton, to participate. Check their social media pages for updated information.
4. Mount Union choir shows at Winter Festival
The Mount Union Concert Choir will perform during the 2025 Winter Festival.
The show, “Out of the Darkness, Shining,” will be at Brush Performance Hall in the Giese Center for the Performing Arts, 67 W. Simpson St. on campus.
Shows will be 11:15 a.m. on Dec. 4, and 7:30 p.m. Dec. 5 and Dec. 6. Doors will open 30 minutes before the performance begins.
Tickets cost $10 for adults and $8 for seniors and veterans. The shows are free to all Mount Union faculty, staff and students by using their Purple Plus number.
Additionally, the Mount Union Alliance Chorale will hold its winter concert, “Yule Blessings” at 3 p.m. Dec. 7 at Brush Performance Hall.
The show will feature soloists and traditional holiday carols. Tickets cost $10. Admission is free for Mount Union students.
Tickets for all shows can be purchased at mountunion.edu/events. The box office can be reached at 330-821-2565.
5. Big band Christmas in Massillon
Christmas with The Akron Big Band will be presented at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 6 at Lions Lincoln Theatre, 156 Lincoln Way E in downtown Massillon.
The Akron Big Band is a 19-piece group playing music from the 1920s through modern times. Music includes Frank Sinatra, Tower of Power and Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band.
Tickets cost $25 and can be purchased at lionslincolntheatre.org. The box office can be reached at 330-481-9105.
Reach Ed at [email protected]. Follow on Instagram at ed_balint and TikTok@edwardbalint.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.cantonrep.com ’
