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During the performing arts season, arts editor Jim Higgins recommends promising music, dance and theater productions to see in the coming month. Look for these stories in the newspaper the final Sunday of the month. They will post online the preceding Thursday at\u00a0jsonline.com\/entertainment\/arts<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n Each show and concert listed in this selection of December performing arts highlights has something to say about the holidays. But that something covers a wide range, from sacred Marian music to naughty-but-nice comedy.<\/p>\n If you’re using the list to help plan a holiday outing, please remember that several Christmas-themed productions opened in November and are still running, including Milwaukee Repertory Theater’s “A Christmas Carol” and “It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play,”<\/a> and First Stage’s “The Pigeon Gets a Big Time Holiday Extravaganza!”<\/p>\n Also, my Journal Sentinel colleague Piet Levy has made a list of Christmas concerts<\/a> on the pop and rock side, including ones by The Commercialists and Voctave that might interest readers of my list. Check out his story at jsonline.com<\/em>.<\/a><\/p>\n Here are 12 theater, music and dance performances you can enjoy in the Milwaukee area in December. I would\u00a0never<\/em>\u00a0tell you that these are the\u00a0only<\/em>\u00a0shows worth seeing here during that time period.<\/p>\n Bel Canto settles into the beautiful basilica for four performances of its holiday concert of carols and classics. 7:30 p.m. Dec. 5, noon and 7:30 p.m. Dec. 6, 4 p.m. Dec. 7. Basilica of St. Josaphat, 2333 S. 6th St. Visit belcanto.org<\/em><\/a> or call (414) 481-8801.<\/p>\n Welcome to Year Three of Milwaukee Ballet\u00a0Artistic Director\u00a0Michael Pink’s reimagining<\/a>\u00a0of the holiday dance extravaganza, which has bright new costumes (even the rats and mice look sharp) and more closely ties the second act to the storyline of the first. Nearly 200 dancers perform in one of the “Nutcracker” casts, including 142 children. Dec. 6-26. Marcus Performing Arts Center, 929 N. Water. Visit milwaukeeballet.org<\/a><\/em>\u00a0or call (414) 902-2103. Note: The 6 p.m. Dec. 11 show is Milwaukee Ballet’s annual sensory-friendly performance.<\/p>\n Milwaukee Mandolin Orchestra is celebrating both the holidays and its 125th anniversary with a pair of concerts. The group began in 1900 under the name Bonne Amie Musical Circle. It has enjoyed remarkable continuity: University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee classical guitar professor Ren\u00e9 Izquierdo is only its sixth musical director through that long span. The varied program will include a new work for the orchestra by composer Josh Schmidt and a guest appearance by chanteuse Robin Pluer. 7 p.m. Dec. 6, Wauwatosa Presbyterian Church, 2366 N. 80th St., Wauwatosa, and 3 p.m. Dec. 7, Plymouth Church UCC, 2717 E. Hampshire St. Visit milwaukeemandolinorchestra.org<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n Continuing an annual traditional, Studio K Flamenco presents two performances of a “Nutcracker”<\/a> where every dance is Spanish dance. This family-oriented show lasts about 70 minutes without intermission. 3 and 7 p.m. Dec. 6, South Milwaukee Performing Arts Center, 901 15th Ave. South Milwaukee. Visit flamenconutcracker.com<\/em>.<\/a><\/p>\n Vanguard Milwaukee<\/a>\u00a0extends its annual tradition of performing this a cappella choral musical about unexpected moments of peace shared by English and German soldiers on the Western Front during World War I. Stage director Jill Anna Ponasik joins returning music director Paula Foley Tillen to get this year’s show on its feet. Notable cast members include Ryan Cappleman, Seth K. Hale, Nicholas Lin, Joe Picchetti and Zachary Thomas Woods. Dec. 11-22. Calvary Presbyterian Church, 935 W. Wisconsin Ave. Visit\u00a0vanguardmke.com<\/em>.<\/a><\/p>\n For the 10th consecutive year, a local, intergenerational cast is performing the show that Langston Hughes created in 1961 to tell the story of Jesus’ birth through a Black lens, drawing heavily on gospel music. Veteran Milwaukee theater artist Sheri Williams Pannell directs this year’s cast, which includes the powerful singer Cynthia Cobb. “Black Nativity”<\/a> is an openly biblical and Christian show, in a celebratory way that aims to communicate awe and excitement. 7:30 p.m. Dec. 11 and 12, 2 and 7:30 p.m. Dec. 13, 2 p.m. Dec. 14. Marcus Performing Arts Center’s Wilson Theatre at Vogel Hall, 929 N. Water St. Visit marcuscenter.org<\/em><\/a> or call (414) 273-7206.<\/p>\n The Florentine’s Baumgartner Studio Artists \u2014 soprano Jamila Drecker-Waxman, mezzo-soprano Lauryn Nelson, tenor Zachary Taylor, baritone David Drettwan and pianist Daniel Weber \u2014 sing an hour of holiday music, with a guest appearance by Milwaukee Children’s Choir. 7:30 p.m. Dec. 11, St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 914 E. Knapp St. Visit florentineopera.org.<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n Associate conductor Ryan Tani leads the MSO and Chorus in a program of seasonal music, including the traditional audience sing-along. Guest performers include soprano LaKisha Jones and the Milwaukee Handbell Ensemble. 2:30 and 7:30 p.m. Dec. 13, 2:30 p.m. Dec. 14, 7:30 p.m. Dec. 19, 2:30 and 7:30 p.m. Dec. 20, and 2:30 p.m. Dec. 21. Bradley Symphony Center, 212 W. Wisconsin Ave. Visit mso.org<\/em><\/a> or call (414) 291-7605.<\/p>\n Travel back through time and space to the southwest suburbs, where Forte will give this Christmas story a 1940s radio theater treatment, complete with a Foley artist who creates live sound effects. Forte founder Randall Dodge directs. There will Christmas carols, too. 2 and 7 p.m. Dec. 13, noon and 3 p.m. Dec. 14, 2 and 7 p.m. Dec. 20, noon and 3 p.m. Dec. 21. Martin Luther High School Fine Arts Center, 5201 S. 76th St., Greendale. Visit ForteTheatreCompany.org<\/em><\/a> or call (414) 366-3634.<\/p>\n The Milwaukee-based vocal ensemble that specializes in sacred early music has created a holiday program of works associated with Mary, the mother of Jesus, by Tallis, Josquin, Britten and others. 7:30 p.m. Dec. 13, St. Jude the Apostle, 734 Glenview Ave., Wauwatosa; 2 p.m. Dec. 14, All Saints’ Cathedral, 818 E. Juneau Ave. Visit aperianimam.com<\/em>.<\/a><\/p>\n The storefront-style company that embraces dark catharsis promises a new version of its holiday sketch show blending “satire, musical parody, physical comedy, and theatrical boldness.” Patrick Schmitz is the lead writer this year, with Constructivists founder Jaimelyn Gray directing. 8 p.m. Dec. 18-20. Broadway Theatre Center, 158 N. Broadway. Visit theconstructivists.org<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n‘Resounding Joy: Christmas at the Basilica,’ Bel Canto Chorus<\/h2>\n
‘The Nutcracker,’ Milwaukee Ballet<\/h2>\n
Holiday concerts, Milwaukee Mandolin Orchestra<\/h2>\n
‘The Flamenco Nutcracker,’ Studio K Flamenco<\/h2>\n
‘All Is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914,” Vanguard Milwaukee<\/h2>\n
‘Black Nativity,’ Black Arts MKE<\/h2>\n
Carols & Classics, Florentine Opera<\/h2>\n
Holiday Pops, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra<\/h2>\n
‘Miracle on 34th Street: A Live Radio Play,’ Forte Theatre Company<\/h2>\n
‘Gratia,’ Aperi Animam<\/h2>\n
‘A Very Deadly Constructivists Holiday,’ The Constructivists<\/h2>\n
Cherish the Ladies, Schaeur Arts Center<\/h2>\n