Bicentennial celebrations add to T-town holiday traditions

Typically, Tuscaloosa’s holiday celebrations swing into high gear right after Thanksgiving, and tend to wind down within the next several days. But for 2019, some of our major seasonal events have been timed to center around the city’s bicentennial, Dec. 13.

So while the Chuck’s Fish feast happens Thursday, and Dickens Downtown sticks with the first Tuesday of December, some events will be popping up in second or third weeks of the month.

Here’s a roundup:

ONGOING THROUGH DEC. 24

• Santa will remain on site at University Mall through Dec. 24, from 10 a.m.-1 p.m., 2-5 and 6-8 p.m. Monday through Saturday; 1-5:30 p.m. Sundays. Photo packages range from $17 to $49, with frames, key chains and magnets available. Train rides for $3 per rider.

ONGOING THROUGH JAN. 20

• Holidays on the River: Ice-skating and related events at the Tuscaloosa Amphitheater. Session tickets, $15, include skate rentals. Closed holidays and some others days; for the full schedule, see www.holidaysontheriver.com.

THURSDAY

• Chuck’s Fish annual Thanksgiving feast: 11 a.m.-4 p.m., free for all, 508 Greensboro Ave. No reservations. Takeaways will also be available. Donations are not required, but will be accepted to benefit Habitat for Humanity Tuscaloosa.

• Druid City Brewing Co. Thanksgiving potluck dinner: 6-10 p.m., also free. Druid City Brewing Co., 607 14th St., Parkview Plaza, will provide turkey, ham and vegan roast. Patrons are encouraged to bring a side dish.

FRIDAY

• Santa’s arrival at Midtown Village: 1-4 p.m., free, on the green adjacent to Barnes and Noble, with music, children’s activities and more. Kids can write Letters to Santa and place them in Santa’s Mailbox. Santa will arrive in a horse-drawn carriage, then kids can visit with Santa on stage. Midtown Village, 1800 McFarland Blvd. E.

SUNDAY

• Fifth Street Vintage Market: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. 4150 Fifth St., Northport. More than 20 vendors in vintage and handmade decor and gifts.

SUNDAYS AND WEDNESDAYS THROUGH DEC. 24

• Flashback Cinema at the Hollywood 16 holiday movies: “Home Alone” (1990) Sunday and Wednesday; “White Christmas” (1954), Dec. 8 and 11; “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation” (1989), Dec. 15 and 18; “It’s a Wonderful Life” (1946), Dec. 22 and 24. Flashback Cinema films play at 2 and 7 p.m. Sundays and Wednesdays. Matinee prices $10 general, $9 seniors and children; evening shows $12 general, $9 seniors and children. www.flashbackcinema.net/schedule.

TUESDAY

• Shelton State Community College tree lighting and singalong: 1 p.m., free, Martin Campus Atrium. Sacred and secular holiday pieces.

• Dickens Downtown: 5-8 p.m., downtown Northport. Annual Victorian Christmas celebration, with live music, story readings in the Kentuck Courtyard of Wonders, Father Christmas, snow machine, Victorian decor, refreshments and more. Free and family-friendly.

WEDNESDAY

• DCP Holiday Stroll: 6-8 p.m., walk along the Tinsel Trail, hosted by Druid City Pride and A Cutting Edge Caterer. Gather at the River Market at 6 for hot cocoa and treats provided by A Cutting Edge Caterer. Pet and family friendly; pets must be on a leash and up-to-date on vaccinations. Owners are responsible for cleaning waste.

DEC. 5

• “Holiday Lights” Evening with Arts ’n Autism: 6-8 p.m., $20, Harrison Galleries, 2315 University Blvd. Live music by Vulcan Eejits, art, food, drinks, raffles; all proceeds benefit Arts ’n Autism. For more, write artsnautism2@gmail.com.

• Shelton State music department Christmas concert: 7:30 p.m., free, Martin Campus Atrium, featuring the Shelton Singers and the Shelton State Jazz Ensemble.

DEC. 6

• Kafka Downtown 2 — The Metamorphosis Continues: 5-8 p.m., free, Lorrie Lane Studio, 2420 Sixth Street, Tuscaloosa, with new art, Kafka snowflake-making, and a guest appearance from the Ghost of Kafka Past. 292-3177.

DEC. 6-15

• “The Watsons Go to Birmingham — 1963”: Theatre Tuscaloosa production, Bean-Brown Theatre, Shelton State. Based on the Newbery and Coretta Scott King Award-winning novel by Christopher Paul Curtis, adapted for the stage by Reginald André Jackson. Performances at 7:30 p.m., Dec. 6, 7, 12 and 13; with 2 p.m. matinees Dec. 8, 11, 14 and 15. Tickets $19 general, $17 for seniors and members of the military, and $14 for students and children. www.theatretusc.com 391-2277.

DEC. 7

• Holiday Open House, Mildred Westervelt Warner Transportation Museum: 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m., free. There will be refreshments, decor and a new exhibit about the Civil War and reconstruction in Tuscaloosa. The museum is at 1901 Jack Warner Parkway.

DEC. 8

• 1950s Christmas at Tuscaloosa County Preservation Society open houses: 2-4 p.m., Tinseled trees, Lincoln Logs, baby dolls, electric trains circling trees, live music and refreshments from the ’50s, Santa and more. Battle Friedman House, Murphy-Collins African American Museum, the Old Tavern, the Jemison-Van de Graaff Mansion and the McGuire-Strickland Home. Admission to all is $10; children under 12 free. 758-2238. www.historictuscaloosa.org.

• Stillman College Choir Annual Christmas Concert: 6 p.m., free, Birthright Alumni Hall, Stillman College.

• Festival Service of Nine Lessons and Carols: 6 p.m., free, Christ Episcopal Church. 758-4252.

DEC. 9

• Paul W. Bryant Museum Holiday Open House: 4-7 p.m., with holiday music, refreshments, kids’ activities and more, 300 Bryant Drive, directly across the street from Coleman Coliseum. 866-772-BEAR (2327). www.bryantmuseum.com.

DEC. 12-13

• Tuscaloosa SantaCon 2019: Kick-off toy-drop event at Druid City Brewing Co., 7 p.m. until closing, Dec. 12. Bring unopened toys for boys or girls up to age 18, or home and bath supplies for mothers, to be donated to Turning Point of West Alabama. www.turningpointservices.org. SantaCon pub crawl — costumes required — will depart from the Downtown Pub at 9 p.m. Each stop will last about 15 to 30 minutes; cash will speed service. DJ Brian Oliv will host a dance party at the final stop, the Houndstooth, on the Strip. For more, email dsmithscenes@gmail.com.

DEC. 12-15

• Tuscaloosa Community Dancers’ “The Nutcracker”: For the 48th year, the combined TCD troupe will perform Tchaikovsky’s holiday classic, at the Bama Theatre. For 2019, joining 90 local dancers, New York City Ballet soloists Lauren King and Troy Schumacher will perform as Sugar Plum Fairy and Cavalier; the ACT’s Joey Lay will be Drosselmeyer. Performances at 7 p.m. Dec. 12, 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. Dec. 14, and 2 p.m. Dec. 15. There’ll be a first-act-only school show 9:30 a.m. Dec. 13. Breakfast with The Nutcracker will be held at 8:45 a.m. before the Dec. 14 morning show, as a fund-raiser for TCD. Tickets $21 general, $17 for seniors (60 and up) and $12 for students and children. www.tututix.com. www.tuscaloosadancers.com.

DEC. 13

• 44th West Alabama Christmas Parade: 6:30 p.m., downtown Tuscaloosa. Tree-lighting ceremony 5:15 at the Tuscaloosa County Courthouse.

DEC. 14

• 17th Holiday Singalong: 1-2:30 p.m., Capitol Park. Free and family-friendly afternoon to sing songs of the season, presented by The Tuscaloosa News. Lyric sheets, song leaders, accompaniment, food and drink. 205-310-5287.

• Christmas Afloat: 5 p.m., free lighted boat parade, Black Warrior River, fireworks show around 5:45 p.m.

• Holiday Chili Cookoff: 5-7 pm., Alcove International Tavern, 730 22nd Ave., fundraiser for Emerge Alabama. Contestant entry fee $25. Chili needs to arrive between 4 and 4:45. First prize will be a four-night stay at Seaside Beach and Racquet Club, Orange Beach.

• Alabama Choir School 35th Anniversary Winter Concert: 7-9 p.m., Moody Concert Hall, UA campus, featuring five ACS choirs. Tickets $15 reserved, $12 general. www.alachoirschool.org.

DEC. 16

• TSO Christmas: Annual holiday concert with the Tuscaloosa Symphony Orchestra, Prentice Concert Chorale, Shelton Singers and Alabama Choir School, 7 p.m., Moody Concert Hall, UA campus. Tickets $20 and up. 752-5515. www.tsoonline.org.

DEC. 19

• July in Christmas: 8 p.m., Druid City Brewing Co., featuring Matt Wurtele and His Good Time Buddies playing Jimmy Buffett and other summertime-beach covers.

DEC. 20-21

• Christmas with The ACT: 7 p.m. Dec. 20, 2 and 7 p.m. Dec. 21, $15, The Actor’s Charitable Theatre studio, 2205 Ninth Ave., Northport. Hot chocolate and light desserts, music and other performances. www.theactonline.com.