Seasonal Boston beckons

'Tis the art season to be jolly, what with fantastic theater and music abounding in Boston. Hence, venture forth fair Tuftonians! There is a plethora of seasonal arts events about town just waiting to be discovered. Available for a limited time only, these events might add some holiday cheer to an otherwise blistery evening spent weathering this nasty New England winter.



>Theater



The delightful holiday classic, A Christmas Carol, is playing at the Foothills Theater in Worcester through Dec. 28, and the adaptation by John Neary promises to be a rejuvenating departure from traditional renderings of the play. With additional character depth and cleverly-delivered humor and wit, the result is an edgier spin. This might be just the thing to get rid of that grinch-like state you've been in due to finals stress. The play is a humorous look at good ol' Ebenezer Scrooge and his holiday antics and a chance to steal away from that term paper you've been writing.

If tradition isn't your thing... in fact, if you find the holiday season to be a total sham, get your bitter self to this hilarious glimpse at the North Pole gone mad. My life with the Kringle Kult: A Holiday Comedy, produced at the Boston Theater Works, promises to provide holiday bliss, but not without substantial bite. The brainchild of John Kuntz, the work is a wacky Christmas comedy about a wicked baroness and her mad scheming. She orchestrates the takeover of Kringletown, a town overseen by Karl Kringle, described as Santa's right-hand man. The play runs at the Boston Center for the Arts (539 Tremont Street, Boston; 617 426 2787), through Dec. 13. Curtain is at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, at 8 p.m. on Friday, at 7 and 10 p.m. on Saturday, and at 5 p.m. on Sunday. Tickets are available at the box office for $20.



Music

However, if you prefer cozy fire places to excitable firecracker, perhaps you'd prefer to spend the evening in a more musically-enchanting manner.

The Museum of Fine Arts is currently featuring Saengerfest, its own rendition of a choral holiday celebration. On Dec. 18 at 7:30 p.m., the Saengerfest Men's Chorus will perform a diverse selection of international choral music. This selection includes traditional English and Welsh songs, as well as anthems combined with an international smorgasbord of folk, sacred, spiritual, and love songs. The group has delivered performances at the prestigious London Royal Albert Hall, and at both Salisbury and Winchester Cathedrals.

The Boston Pops, with conductor Keith Lockhart, also assures its public a fine holiday show, in combination with the Tanglewood Festival Chorus, conducted by John Oliver. The groups will present a performance with a wide array of both traditional and classic music fitting for the season. The program's most noteworthy aspects include an innovative arrangement of Mendelssohn's "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" and Handel's "For unto us a child is born," from the Messiah Chorus. Other elements worth mentioning are the performance of "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" by the men's chorus, from Frostiana. Additionally, two portions encourage the audience to sing along... just when you thought you had outgrown caroling.

Meanwhile, the Boston Gay Men's chorus performs a bevy of Christmas and Hanukkah songs alike under the direction of Benjamin Britten. Select performances include costumed acts to go along with songs! This promises some gay, holiday fin (pun intended). The first performance will be delivered at 8 p.m. on Dec. 13 at Arlington Street Church in Boston. A second performance will be held on Dec. 14 at 2p.m. at the New England Conservatory's Jordan Hall.

There's nothing quite like seeing sugar plum fairies frolic on stage during the holiday season. The Boston Ballet's The Nutcracker is currently running in its last season at the Wang Theater. The Nutcracker is performed Fridays at 7:30 p.m., Saturdays at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., Sundays at 1 p.m. and 5:30 p.m., and Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7:30 p.m. at the Wang Theatre (270 Tremont St., Boston; Tickets $19-$77; 800 447 7400).